Barry Cowen (Laois-Offaly, Fianna Fail)
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12. To ask the Minister for Finance the estimated cumulative cost of the measures that he has taken since and including budget 2022 to help address cost of living issues; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [20523/22]

Barry Cowen (Laois-Offaly, Fianna Fail)
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Will the Minister of State inform the House about the cumulative measures that have been taken by the Government to address the cost of living issues since and including budget 2022? I ask in order that the House be especially aware of the effort on the part of Government in this area. It has committed to these measures on numerous occasions in the House but I ask that the cumulative measures and the costs associated with them be relayed.

Seán Fleming (Laois-Offaly, Fianna Fail)
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I thank the Deputy for raising this particular issue. We have had discussions here about various forms of taxation, which is one part of the issue the Government has been dealing with, but there have been many other interventions as well. The Government has intervened on four occasions to address the increases in the cost of living, at a combined cost of approximately €2.1 billion.

First, budget 2022 contained an income tax package of €520 million. On the expenditure side, a social welfare package worth €558 million was introduced including, among other measures, a general €5 rate increase for working-age and pension-age recipients, and a €5 increase in the fuel allowance. People are aware that the fuel allowance, with the €5 increase and the extended period of time during which it is being out, is now worth over €1,000 each to the 390,000 people in receipt of it.

This means that €390 million is being spent on the scheme, which is vastly superior to the level of expenditure a short time ago.

A suite of measures was introduced in mid-February, amounting to €505 million. Measures included an energy credit of €200 to every household in the country, a once-off lump sum payment in respect of the fuel allowance and a 20% reduction in public transport fares.

In March, the Government agreed to VAT-inclusive reductions in excise duty of 20 cent per litre in respect of petrol, 15 cent per litre in respect of diesel and 2 cent per litre in respect of marked gas oil known as green diesel.

Finally, earlier this month, the Government announced a further set of measures amounting to approximately €180 million. These measures include a reduction in the VAT rate for electricity and gas to 9% from 1 May until the end of October, an additional payment in respect of the fuel allowance and an extension of the reduction in excise duty until budget day in mid-October.

While the Government has been proactive in limiting the fallout from the impact of higher energy and other prices, there is a limit on what we can do as many of these matters are outside our control. The people of Ireland understand that. The priority is to minimise the impact on those who are most affected. Many of the drivers of these issues are beyond the Government's control and we cannot fully insulate people from their entire effects.

Barry Cowen (Laois-Offaly, Fianna Fail)
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I thank the Minister of State. I note that the value of the measures the Minister of State has relayed is over €2.1 billion. I would like to ask him about the VAT commitments that have been made for the period until October of this year. Given the situation in Ukraine, and the impact of the war on energy prices, does the Minister of State see the VAT rate being revisited and the measure being extended? Maybe he would inform the House if that is the Government's thinking in this regard if the current circumstances remain or, indeed, their impacts increase.

Seán Fleming (Laois-Offaly, Fianna Fail)
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I thank the Deputy for his question. As I have said, there were four measures introduced, starting with the budget. The February and March measures were followed by the most recent set of changes. The Minister for Finance has made it clear that this is the final intervention until the next budget. There are no further interventions planned over the summer months. These measures are designed specifically to take us up to budget night, at which stage any new measures agreed as part of the budget can be announced. It goes without saying - I am sure people are tired of the Government saying this - that these are matters for discussion in the lead-up to the budget and for decision on budget night. Such discussions have commenced already. Everybody knows we are not in a position to release any information in relation to that matter, other than to reiterate everything that has been said about the context Ireland will find itself in, including the Ukraine situation, which will be uppermost in all budget preparations.