Regina Doherty (Meath East, Fine Gael)
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I thank the Ceann Comhairle for allowing me raise this matter which affects more than 300,000 people. Last year, 11,773 customers had their electricity cut off, of which 81% were families. Up to 70,000 customers are in arrears of more than 60 days and only 10% are in payment arrangements. ESB Networks told me last week that on average 300 families a week in the greater Dublin area are being disconnected. It then takes them an average of five days to be reconnected. The payment, for which these families must borrow, beg or find, also includes a €89 charge for disconnection, as well as a €89 one for reconnection. These are shocking statistics.

What directives does the Minister for Communications, Energy and Natural Resources believe the Government can put in place to encourage our various network suppliers to show more compassion to struggling families who are being cut off in far too high numbers? I suggest we examine a social energy tariff which they have in the UK. These schemes offer discounts to customers who are in need rather than the typical Irish case of offering discounts to the staff of the ESB.

The schemes of all energy suppliers in the United Kingdom are obliged to offer some social energy tariff to give discounted electricity bills to customers in need. Rules from the energy regulator, Ofgem, state social energy tariffs must at least match the cheapest deal on offer from the providers, including those online.

Should we encourage our energy suppliers to fund a not-for-profit helpline to offer advice and assistance on payment schemes, social energy tariffs, grants for home improvements and benefits to which customers might be entitled? I appeal to the Government to step in to ensure no one is cut off from his or her electricity supply as a result of a genuine inability to pay. I appeal to all agencies to co-operate with customers and start accepting new payment structures. Cutting off the electricity supply of families which are genuinely trying to meet their payments should not be an option. Customers are trying their best to be responsible, with thousands opting to have pay-as-you-go meters installed in their homes as a way of dealing with energy bills. However, this option is not on offer to those who are already in trouble, but these are the ones most in need of pay-as-you-go meters. Will the Government seriously consider addressing the three energy suppliers on this matter? This is happening on the day when Bord Gáis announced that it had to recruit 90 new debt collectors recently. We are focusing our energy in the wrong places. We need to be more compassionate. Energy suppliers must do everything they can to ensure the most vulnerable, those most in need, including struggling families, are helped and assisted to pay their bills. These are outstanding debts that most families want to pay in a structured and more stable environment.

Pat Rabbitte (Dublin South West, Labour)
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I thank the Deputy for allowing me to address the main issue she has raised. The regulation of the electricity and gas markets is a matter for the Commission for Energy Regulation, CER, an independent statutory body with no ministerial role or function in this matter. However, other than in vacant premises which account for approximately one third of disconnections, I am concerned about any level of disconnection to customers. The CER is a statutorily independent body established under the Electricity Regulation Act 1999 and has responsibility for overseeing the regulation of Ireland's electricity and gas sectors. It promotes competition in the electricity and natural gas markets in order that customers can ultimately benefit from competitive pressures and prices. It also protects the interests of customers, especially the disadvantaged and the elderly, by ensuring standards of services are set and codes of practice are in place to protect consumers. I am well aware that some consumers are having trouble meeting their electricity bills owing to challenges facing the economy at this time and the fact that gas and electricity prices are increasing as a result of a significant rise in the price of gas worldwide.

I had asked the regulator to work with all electricity and gas supply companies to implement initiatives to ensure disconnection for non-payment of accounts would not take place where customers were experiencing genuine financial hardship and had either entered into a payment plan agreement or had agreed to the installation of a pay-as-you-go meter, as appropriate. The code of practice with the regulator holds that if consumers install a pay-as-you-go meter or if they enter into a payment plan, they will not be disconnected. The meters are available, but we need to improve the rate of take-up.

The CER has introduced several initiatives in respect of a disconnections policy. These include updating the guidelines for the disconnections code of practice, reducing the costs and the allocation of the costs of disconnection and reconnection for domestic customers. Instead of the customer bearing the entire cost, these costs are now shared equally between the supplier and the customer. This is an interim measure effective until December this year. The regulator is also working with the energy supply industry on interim prepayment solutions and has consulted on the challenges of so-called debt hopping with the industry and other interest groups. These groups include the MABS, the Society of St. Vincent de Paul and so on.

In October 2011 the regulator introduced a process of debt flagging into the change of supplier processes. Debt flagging will encourage customers and suppliers to address arrears in an upfront manner and hence prevent the accumulation of further debt and possible disconnection in the future. The regulator has also proactively facilitated a pay-as-you-go metering system, also known as a prepayment meter, in the natural gas and electricity industries to allow customers to manage their bills more effectively. The pay-as-you-go metering system is being rolled out throughout the country by all suppliers. In addition to providing a useful budgeting tool for customers, suppliers are required to offer customers facing disconnection the option of a pay-as-you-go meter where this is suitable, instead of proceeding to disconnect the customer. In these circumstances the customer's outstanding debt is placed on the meter and repaid over time.

In late 2011 the regulator carried out an audit of the guidelines for the code of practice on disconnections to see if suppliers were in compliance. The audit ensured all suppliers had implemented the guidelines. In the case of all examined domestic customer disconnections, the suppliers had exceeded the regulator's requirements in terms of timing of communications to customers and the numbers of attempts made to engage with customers prior to disconnection.

Peter Mathews (Dublin South, Fine Gael)
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I am afraid the Minister has run out of time. We will move on to the supplementary question.

Regina Doherty (Meath East, Fine Gael)
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I have no wish to be argumentative, but do we genuinely believe the code of practice employed by the CER is actually working? Under the code, anyone who finds himself or herself with a difficulty in paying his or her ESB bill has the option of using a pay-per-hour meter as opposed to being cut off. Some 300 families are being cut off in the greater Dublin area every week. We are suggesting these 300 families are choosing to be cut off rather than using a pay-as-you-go meter. This makes no sense whatsoever. My information came to me by accident last week from a gentleman from ESB Networks who happened to be installing an electricity connection in a unit on the main street in Ashbourne. He was able to detail the differences between the three service providers. I suggest, therefore, that code of practice is not working. Will the Government arrange for some communication with the CER to ask those responsible to examine the cases of the 300 families most recently cut off in the greater Dublin area, why they were cut off and whether they were genuinely offered pay-as-you-go meters or the opportunity to pay their bill or the outstanding debt over a longer period? Will the Government ask the CER to sincerely reconsider the figure of €89 that people are charged for the luxury of having their ESB supply cut off and, more important, whether it will reconsider the figure of €89 they are charged to have to it restored? While I appreciate we are now sharing costs, the price of the service being provided is outrageous for those who are already in considerable distress. There is no family in the country which is having its electricity supply turned off which is not in distress.

Pat Rabbitte (Dublin South West, Labour)
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I am unsure of the provenance of the Deputy's information, but the fact is that the supply company is supposed to offer such a person the option of having a pay-as-you-go meter installed rather than disconnection. The accumulated arrears at the time are put on the meter and cleared over a period. It is important that the Deputy has raised this issue at this time of the year. The net point is that we should try to increase the uptake of pay-as-you-go meters or prepayment plans. Under the protocol, where these are in place, the supply companies may not disconnect. Many factors are involved. The supply companies, whether it be ESB Networks or Bord Gáis, although they are State companies, have a commercial remit and are now operating in a competitive marketplace.

I am concerned about the second point the Deputy made. That matter is covered in the remaining part of my script and relates to the length of time it takes to make a disconnection.

The agreement in place at present requires the disconnection to be carried out within two working days. I accept that a disconnection on a Thursday evening can be problematic and I will talk to the supply companies about that.

On the net issue, in circumstances where one third of all disconnections are vacant premises, one need not be too observant that there are plenty of vacant premises around the place for the reasons that we know. Some others are due to debt hopping - customers swapping from one supplier to another - and that issue must be addressed. In the cases of genuine hardship to which Deputy Regina Doherty refers, however, it is essential that those persons opt for the pay-as-you-go meter or enter into a pre-payment plan after which they may not be disconnected.

Peter Mathews (Dublin South, Fine Gael)
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I will allow Deputy Doherty ten seconds.

Regina Doherty (Meath East, Fine Gael)
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I will not even take ten seconds as it is merely a point of clarification. The second point was not a criticism of the service providers regarding the length of time it takes them to reconnect customers. It was a criticism because customers are not getting reconnected until they pay off their debt in full and it is taking families on average five days to beg, borrow or steal the money to pay off their debt in full. That in itself makes little of the code of practice allowing customers to pay off their debt on a pay-as-you-go meter.

Peter Mathews (Dublin South, Fine Gael)
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That was 25 seconds.