Willie O'Dea (Limerick City, Fianna Fail)
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12. To ask the Minister for Social Protection the way in which he plans to address the issue of fuel poverty; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [28747/16]

Willie O'Dea (Limerick City, Fianna Fail)
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The Minister said earlier in response to Deputy Joan Collins that he had met a number of organisations representing the elderly in the run-up to the budget. They will no doubt have made him aware that fuel poverty has become a huge issue, particularly among the elderly. What plan does the Minister have for his Department to deal with this issue? I know that other Departments are involved but I am asking this question specifically from the point of view of income because income is a fundamental determinant.

Leo Varadkar (Dublin West, Fine Gael)
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The risk of fuel poverty is influenced by a combination of fuel prices, weather, income and the heat efficiency of housing. My Department will continue to ensure those on low incomes and those who are more vulnerable to energy poverty are supported through the fuel allowance and the household benefits package. The fuel allowance is a payment of €22.50 per week for 26 weeks from October to April to more than 380,000 low income households at an estimated cost of €224 million in 2016. This payment assists these households with the higher energy costs that arise in that period. It is a contribution towards the energy costs of a household and is not intended to meet those costs in full. Only one allowance is paid per household.

My Department also pays an electricity or gas allowance as part of the household benefits package to more than 420,000 customers at an estimated cost of €228 million in 2016. Under the supplementary welfare allowance scheme, a special heating supplement may be paid to assist people in certain circumstances who have special heating needs due to ill health or infirmity. Exceptional needs payments may also be made to help meet an essential one-off cost which a person is unable to meet from his or her own resources.

The Government’s affordable energy strategy indicated that the best measure to address energy poverty is to improve the thermal efficiency of homes. The better energy warmer homes scheme, administered by the Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland, funds energy efficiency improvements in the homes of the elderly and vulnerable, making their homes more comfortable, healthier and more cost-effective to heat.

Willie O'Dea (Limerick City, Fianna Fail)
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We have all had representations from organisations representing the elderly. They have conducted surveys and have come across people who do not light a fire until the afternoon and who go to bed early in the winter to save fuel. Other people resort to taking public transport or taking shelter in public libraries and other public buildings because they simply cannot afford to heat their homes properly for a sufficient period of time to enable them to live comfortably in their homes.

Growing older increasingly seems to mean growing colder. The Minister mentioned that there are other Departments involved in addressing this issue and I recognise that and while I acknowledge that energy efficiency is important, ESRI research into fuel poverty, conducted in 2015, found that the problem of fuel poverty is primarily one of inadequate resources rather than being mainly a housing issue. The Minister has indicated that his Department will deal with this through the fuel allowance and the household benefits package, both of which have been cut although, admittedly, there was a partial restoration of the fuel allowance, which I welcome. Can we look forward to improvements in those areas in the immediate future, for example, next week?

Leo Varadkar (Dublin West, Fine Gael)
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Unfortunately, the budget is not agreed yet so I cannot tell the Deputy whether there will be something in it on the fuel allowance. It is worth pointing out that, in the budget for this year, the fuel allowance was increased from €20 to €22.50 per week, an increase of more than 10%. Exceptional needs payments can be paid in special circumstances. It is also worth pointing out that fuel costs are falling at a significant rate. According to the CSO's latest figures, the cost of electricity has gone down by 6.1% in the last 12 months, gas by 2.4% and home heating oil by 13.5%. The cost of fuel is going down this year and the fuel allowance has gone up. Obviously, one would hope that we will continue in the same direction next year, but I cannot guarantee that at this stage.

Willie O'Dea (Limerick City, Fianna Fail)
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While I welcome last year's increase in the fuel allowance, it was only a partial reversal of a previous cut. I recognise that fuel prices are dropping, but research published recently in the Journal of Environmental Healthrelating to the island of Ireland, that is, the Thirty-two Counties, concluded that Ireland has the highest rate of excess winter mortality in Europe, with an estimated 2,800 excess deaths each winter. Fuel poverty is a crucial factor in this phenomenon. I am referring to that research to reinforce the point that there is a real problem here. Financial assistance to those who cannot afford the cost of fuel is a key factor in combating fuel poverty, and I want to impress that point on the Minister.

Leo Varadkar (Dublin West, Fine Gael)
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The Deputy's point is well made. Even aside from the fact that the fuel allowance can help ease fuel poverty, it is a very good payment in the sense that it is means tested and very targeted. I am not sure, however, that I will be able to match all of Deputy O'Dea's expectations in this particular budget, but if he keeps me here for long enough, we will get there.