Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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I move:

(1) THAT for the purposes of the tax charged by virtue of section 95 of the Finance Act 1999 (No. 2 of 1999), that Act be amended, with effect as on and from 25 March 2026, by the substitution of the following for Schedule 2 to that Act (as amended by section 52 of the Finance (No. 2) Act 2023 (No. 39 of 2023)): SCHEDULE 2

RATES OF MINERAL OIL TAX TABLE

(2) IT is hereby declared that it is expedient in the public interest that this Resolution shall have statutory effect under the provisions of the Provisional Collection of Taxes Act 1927 (No. 7 of 1927).

This is the resolution for the temporary reductions in mineral oil tax. This first financial resolution provides for reductions in the rates of mineral oil tax applying to petrol, auto diesel and to marked-gas oil. These reductions will take effect from midnight tonight until 31 May 2026.

The rate of mineral oil tax will be reduced on a VAT inclusive basis by 15 cent per litre for petrol, 20 cent per litre for auto diesel and 3 cent per litre for marked-gas oil. To further ease the financial impact of the significant energy price shock arising from the ongoing conflict in the Gulf region and Middle East region, the Minister, Deputy O’Brien, will also reduce the NORA levy from 2 cent per litre to a nominal amount. That will require primary legislation which will be forthcoming this week. When the excise reductions in petrol and diesel are combined with the changes to the NORA levy, that means a 22 cent reduction in a litre of diesel and a 17 cent reduction in a litre of petrol.

These are concrete actions to help and support families, working people and business with the real and rising cost of fuel and energy. We know the pressure people are feeling right now. People are genuinely worried about the impact this conflict is having on their energy costs and what is facing them and their families in the weeks and months ahead.

There will be a second resolution, which we will discuss later in the House, on the diesel rebate scheme providing practical support to hauliers and coach operators. The estimate cost to the Exchequer of the two resolutions relating to the Department of Finance is approximately €160 million. When coupled with the NORA levy proposal and the fuel allowance expansion that brings the total Government intervention today to €250 million.

The Government is conscious of the increased financial pressure on households and businesses arising from this ongoing conflict. These measures are an effort in the here and now to help reduce fuel prices and to help in a practical way people at the pump and to endeavour to support key sectors of the Irish economy. Solid budgetary management in recent years means we now have the capacity to respond in a timely and targeted way to help with this energy price shock. That point should not be lost on any of us. If we look at countries endeavouring to deal with this global economic challenge, and deal with it from a position of deficit, we see how the market responds to those countries. We have an ability to respond because of the sensible economic decisions this Government and successive governments have taken in recent years and the resilience and hard work of the Irish people.

These measures will be in place for a defined period of time. I want to be very clear why that is. We have to remain nimble, agile and flexible in relation to any set of measures. It is entirely possible that what seems like the right economic medicine today may not be the prescription required in the weeks and months ahead.

Therefore the Government - and let our position not be misrepresented - reserves the option to adjust our approach as circumstances evolve to revise, amend, edit and start or stop measures that may be required in the time ahead. This approach is not unique to Ireland. It is very much in line with the European Council conclusions from Brussels last week and also with the response of other EU member states. I think I referenced in the House last week the decision taken by the Italian government to bring in measures for 20 days. Every government and set of people are trying to grapple with a fast-evolving situation both from a humanitarian point of view but, for the purpose of this debate, from an economic point of view as well.

These measures will provide mitigation for businesses and households for against the recent fuel price increases. It is real money and a real reduction in taxes on petrol, diesel and green diesel. These excise reductions strike the balance between mitigating costs to consumers while managing the tax base and also respecting the law under the Energy Tax Directive.

We have to navigate this period of uncertainty to the best of our ability. To put it bluntly, nobody knows what the situation will be in a month from now. We have to remain flexible in our response. The economic impact will depend on the depth and duration of supply disruption. The Government will help to share the burden of the energy price shock but no government in the world can fully absorb the impact. That is why there is also benefit in continuing to work at European level. I will attend a meeting of the Eurogroup on Friday and the Taoiseach attended a meeting of the European Council last week because we have seen in the past where conflicts have become elongated. Europe has often considered how it can move together and various policy responses and levers we can consider as a collective.

This conflict also is a sharp reminder that we must accelerate our transition towards energy independence. While much of the discussion is quite rightly on what we can do to help people in the here and now, and that is one of the reasons we are bringing forward these measures tonight to take effect from midnight, we also have to remind ourselves that as long as we are reliant on fossil fuels from far-flung parts of the world, there is a real vulnerability from an economic security point of view as well. We have to see what we can do at a European level and an Irish level to accelerate that transition in terms of our fuel and energy supply. I think that is a view shared across this House and I welcome suggestions and proposals in relation to that.

Specifically on this resolution, we saw prices rise quickly enough on the forecourts when the war in Iran broke out. It is very important that we see these cuts passed on to the consumer very quickly as well. The Government will be monitoring this extremely closely. In the past the CCPC has done useful work. At the start of the brutal illegal Russian aggression and war on Ukraine the CCPC monitored the passing on of the impact.

I hear what the industry says. I accept the logic that for some small rural stations that it might take a little bit longer but for the vast majority, we expect to see very quick passing on of this. People were quick enough to put it up. They need to be quick enough now to show the benefit of that. The Government reserves the right to consider any further action - legislative or otherwise - that may be required should this not be the case. More broadly, I indicate again tonight the Government's intention to strengthen further the powers of the CCPC and to work on a collaborative basis across this House with the view of doing that as well.

I have heard much commentary in relation to the Government's proposals today from the Opposition. Some are constructive and some are less so. I look forward to engaging constructively in the time ahead because we all must approach this challenge with a degree of humility. We have to make sure we keep a degree of our economic powder dry because the economic situation that our country will face in the winter is very different to an economic situation that our country could face this summer if this conflict goes on for a longer period of time. We all hope it does not. We must all work for de-escalation. The set of measures we may need to consider together will indeed be different too. I am happy and eager to engage constructively with the Opposition. I ask people to acknowledge that we are taking efforts today - a €250 million package - to try to help people in the here and now.

I hope in the Northern Ireland that the Executive takes the measures too that are required. I note with significant concerns the comment from the Alliance MP, Sorcha Eastwood, today in relation to the delays and the lack of urgency on the part of the Sinn Féin economy and finance Ministers in relation to measures to help people with heating costs. I hope that can be resolved as well. I hope Sinn Féin's concern in relation to energy costs are not partisan concerns and do not stop at the Border.

We will work constructively with anybody in this House on ideas and proposals. Today, we are bringing forward a balanced package of measures to help people at risk of fuel poverty and people who are struggling with the home heating oil by extending the fuel allowance season for a further four weeks, helping almost 500,000 households most in need. Many of them are carers, pensioners and people with a disability but also helping people who are getting in the car tomorrow and this week and driving to work or college and trying to go about their business and trying to help somewhat while being honest that no government can absorb all of it.

I propose this resolution tonight. I reiterate our message to industry - let us play fair and let us see that passed on quickly. The Government will monitor this closely. I say to this House and the people of this country in all honesty that we have to be nimble. We may well need to return to this conversation but tonight is a start in terms of an intervention that we believe is the balanced, proportionate and measured response that will make a real difference in the here and now.

Pearse Doherty (Donegal, Sinn Fein)
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I move amendment No 1:

In Schedule 2, inserted by paragraph (1), by the substitution of the following for the rows dated 25 March 2026 and 1 May 2026:

"

Tá teaghlaigh i gcruachás fud fad an Stáit. I ndiaidh ceithre seachtaine den Rialtas ag suí ar a lámha agus na praghsanna ag dul in airde agus in airde gach aon lá, agus an phian agus an deacracht atá seo ag cur ar theaghlaigh ar fud an Stáit, tháinig an Rialtas chun na Dála anocht i ndiaidh brú ollmhór ó Shinn Féin. Tháinig an Rialtas chun tosaigh le moladh nach dtéann fada go leor. Níos measa ná sin, ní dhéanann an Rialtas aon rud ar chor ar bith ó thaobh tithe atá ag brath ar ola le tithe a théamh agus níor ghearr sé an cháin air sin ar chor ar bith. Tá leasú ag Sinn Féin os comhair na Dála anocht. Baineann sé an cháin d'ola do thithe a théamh agus laghdaíonn sé an méid is mó is féidir ó thaobh cháin ar dhíosal agus an méid céanna ar pheitreal.

I move the amendment because this is an emergency for households across the State, not in theory or on spreadsheets, but in kitchens, sitting rooms and homes where people are counting litres of oil and counting every euro just to get through the week. This Government simply does get it because if it did and really got it, we would not have to wait four weeks of delay. We would not have to see four weeks of dithering while prices spiralled and families were hammered and four weeks when the Government stood back and did nothing. After all of that, the Minister has the cheek to come in here with a package of half measures and expect the people to be grateful. It is too little too late. Petrol and diesel prices have soared. Workers depending on their cars to get to work, to bring children to school and to care for their loved ones needed the maximum reductions at the pumps tonight. The Government had it within its power to deliver it but it refused. It made a conscious decision to hold back and shortchange people.

When it comes to home heating oil, the Government's failure is even more stark. The cost of a fill has nearly doubled in a matter of weeks. People are not turning the heating down. They are turning the heating off. They are rationing what little they have left. One person who I met at the weekend told me that they have less than 100 litres in their tank. They are afraid to turn on the heat. They cannot afford the €1,700 to refill. Another told me that they are wearing more clothes inside than they would wear outside just to stay warm. That is the reality that the Minister and his colleagues in Government have created. What does the Government offer them tonight? Two cent per litre. That is not support; that is an insult.

The vast majority who rely on home heating oil do not qualify for the fuel allowance. Carers who are already stretched to breaking point are excluded. People with disabilities - many of them who are not entitled to oil allowance - are simply left behind. These are people who cannot cut back any further because there is nothing left to cut. What is the Minister's answer? A pathetic token gesture-----

Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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What is the Deputy's answer then?

Pearse Doherty (Donegal, Sinn Fein)
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-----that does not even come close to what is needed. And worse, the Government is now preparing to increase carbon tax on home heating oil in the space of four weeks while clawing back with one hand what it pretends to give with the other hand. Do not come in here and try to pretend that this is the Government simply helping the people because it is not. It is just going through the motions while more and more people suffer.

Let us be absolutely clear. The Minister can shake his head all he wants. It is not an issue of resources. There is a multi-billion euro budget surplus. The Government is taking in millions of euro as a result of the additional tax revenue from fuel prices that are soaring. The money is there. Do you know what is not there? It is political will from this Government. That is what is missing - to stand up for ordinary workers and families. When it comes to the crunch - and we all know this on this side of the House - Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael always make the same choices. Hoard the surplus, protect the banks and leave ordinary people to fend for themselves.

Tonight, we are putting forward an alternative. We are putting forward a different choice because Sinn Féin actually listens to people. It listens to the concerns that people have been telling us over the past four weeks.

Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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Not in the North.

Pearse Doherty (Donegal, Sinn Fein)
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Our amendment will deliver the maximum reduction on diesel, the same reduction on petrol and will remove completely excise duty for home heating oil - an oil that has nearly doubled in the space of four weeks and the Government plans to increase the tax on it in a couple of weeks' time. Real measures, immediate relief and action that matches the scale of this crisis because people cannot wait. They cannot take another hit. They should not be abandoned like this. Is the Government going to continue to insult people with half measures or is it going to finally act and deliver the support that they need? We on this side, in Sinn Féin, are going to stand with workers, carers, families, those with disabilities and small businesses tonight. We are not going back down. People deserve far better.

I say to Government TDs and the Independent TDs who support the Government that they are going to have a choice within an hour. Are they going to stand up? Are they going to stand with Ministers? Are they are going to hide behind Deputy Simon Harris or are they going to do the right thing and stand up for workers, carers and small businesses, reduce the excise to the maximum amount and remove excise duty from home heating oil at this time of crisis?

Deputies:

Hear, hear.

Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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Do your job in the North.

Verona Murphy (Wexford, Independent)
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Please, Tánaiste.

Gerald Nash (Louth, Labour)
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The people of Ireland have waited for an intervention from the Government to deal with this energy spike for weeks now. To say that today's intervention - this package of measures - is underwhelming is an understatement. In fact, it is a classic understatement. I said earlier today that these proposals are timid and anaemic. I stand over that. The evidence that is presented to us here this evening is the very definition of half measures when people expected the Government based on its previous track record to go the whole hog and to go the full way. There is not any real comprehension at the Government level of the day-to-day problems that people across this country are experiencing in their daily lives.

Quite frankly, this was evident in last year's insipid budget where choices were made by this Government. I always make the point that if you want to understand my politics and my philosophy, you should look at my budget and look at what my priorities are. It is worth reflecting on that. We know from last year's budget that burger barons and big builders were favoured over the interests of working people. Why do I say that? It is because an expected indexation of PAYE tax rates and bands for workers did not come. Instead workers now pay for a VAT cut for the hospitality sector that will be introduced on 1 July in the teeth of an energy crisis where people across this country are really suffering. The net effect is that after the budget, people who would have hoped to experience a pay increase have seen that pay increase taken away from them because of the absence of indexation and given to the Revenue Commissioners. People are in an even less favourable position in 2026 than they were in 2025 to absorb any energy spike that may be encountered and - my word - people are encountering it today and over the past few weeks.

It was less than two years ago that the Government decided to take the bazooka out and spend billions of euro supporting untargeted, unwarranted and economically illiterate propositions to buy its way to election success. That is what it did. What is the difference between then and now? The difference is that we are three and a half years away from an election. That is the difference. I am intrigued by the justification for some of these measures. I accept that some of them are targeted in the way we would like, for example, the fuel allowance. This is a very good idea and I am glad the Government accepted the Labour Party's argument. We were being briefed that we would have a two-week extension to the fuel allowance. Now it is a four-week extension and that needs to be kept under review. For the record, the Labour Party is happy to support the cut in excise that has been proposed. This is necessary. As the Tánaiste said at the outset, it is important that the value of this is seen at the pumps quick smart. There can be no justification for that not happening. We need to see a price below the €2 psychological threshold reached in the coming days. That is a psychological figure. It is not only psychological but very meaningful for people and we need to see it reached and maintained as prices come down.

We also support the intervention on the fuel allowance but outside of the excise cut, there is very little here for working people. The Government and the famed energy task force have proposed nothing to deal with the hundreds of thousands of people who are in long-term energy arrears. They literally cannot sleep at night because they cannot pay their electricity bills and are focusing on that instead of other things they need to do for their families. We need to look again at the prospect of reducing the VAT rate on home heating oil from 13.5% to 9%. I have seen the strained arguments in replies to parliamentary questions recently as to why that cannot happen. Earlier, the Tánaiste mentioned the European Council initiative at the weekend telling EU member state governments to reduce taxes and levies on energy prices to help people and businesses through. That is one way of doing that. We know about the lower VAT rate of 9% on gas and electricity. Further consideration needs to be given at EU level to reducing the VAT rate on home heating oil.

Why can we not have a tax credit for working people to assist with energy costs? This is something proposed by the Labour Party in successive alternative budgets and by colleagues in the Social Democrats as well. This would be a smart way of targeting several hundred euro each year at working families who do not qualify for the working family payment and need that support.

The volatility we are experiencing in the world at the moment is not going to go away. As the Tánaiste said, this is a very unpredictable set of circumstances. My word, we are performing poorly when it comes to energy security. We got a warning in 2022 after Russia's illegal invasion of Ukraine. We saw the spike in energy prices, the impact of this on residents and businesses, the strain it put on the resources we have and what we needed to do as an Oireachtas to target supports to people who needed them most. We cannot continue to do that. How many warnings do we need? We need that pivot to decarbonisation and energy security. That means focusing more on offshore and onshore wind energy, making that happen and realising the moonshot moment famously mentioned a number of years ago by former Taoiseach Leo Varadkar. We have not reached that moonshot moment. We need to. We need to focus on that and we need to deliver energy security and independence. That is the way to deliver cheaper fuel for the people of Ireland and make sure we are less reliant on the Irans and Russias of this world.

Cian O'Callaghan (Dublin Bay North, Social Democrats)
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The temporary reduction in excise duty will offer some overdue relief at the pumps, and the extension of the fuel allowance will give some respite to pensioners and people receiving social welfare, but it will not be enough. A figure of €152 misses the mark completely. What the Government is doing here is leaving hundreds of thousands of low-income workers who are facing astronomical increases, particularly in home heating oil, out of those targeted measures.

The Government knows well that before Iran was attacked, there were 320,000 households in arrears on their electricity bills before Trump and Israel started this war. People need to be able to heat their homes tonight, they need hot water and they need to be able to get by day by day. The measures the Government is proposing fall well short of that.

Since the budget when it withdrew the universal energy credits, which we never supported because we always said they should be targeted, the Tánaiste and the Taoiseach have said hundreds of times that targeted measures are needed. The extension of the fuel allowance is targeted but it is €152. What about low-paid workers and what about everyone who is entitled to the fuel allowance? Does the Government really think that a figure of €152 will get them out of the hole they are in? If you are reliant on home heating oil and have seen the price almost double, €152 will not cut it and the Government knows that. The Tánaiste can use the word "targeted" all he wants - he has said it hundreds of times - but we put forward proposals for targeted measures that were fully costed and constructive, like the energy credit for 800,000 households at a cost of €362 million, but the Government did not implement them. Why does it not implement a targeted measure that would really help people who need it most?

The Tánaiste uses the word "targeted" all the time but, as Deputy Nash said, we must look at what the Government's most recent budget actually did. It reduced the incomes of the poorest households in Ireland by more than 4%. That is what the budget did. It drove more older people into poverty, with the number increasing from 13% to 19%. These are not my figures; those are the figures from the Parliamentary Budget Office, which independently assesses what this Government has done. At the same time, it reduced the incomes of disabled people by up to €1,400. If someone is €1,400 down, a €152 extension in the fuel allowance is better than nothing but it does not begin to meet the gap that is there and the urgent need for support that people have.

We put forward our proposal for a targeted energy credit, which we costed. I urge the Tánaiste to look at that. It is a sound and economically sustainable approach. That kind of approach will work, regardless of what happens over the coming weeks and months, and will provide the space for additional supports to be put in place as and when they are needed.

The Tánaiste talks about achieving and accelerating energy independence. Fine Gael has been in government since 2011. It is now 2026.

7 o’clock

Sadly for this country and for people who are finding it very hard to meet their bills, the Tánaiste has completely and utterly missed the opportunity we have had. Ireland could be a superpower when it comes to renewable energy. We should be a superpower when it comes to renewable energy. Instead, we are one of the countries in Europe with the highest electricity bills despite these massive resources at our disposal. We should be leading in terms of clean energy. We should not be a laggard on it. Successive Fianna Fáil- and Fine Gael-led Governments have had the resources to be able to invest in this, so why have they not done it?

Look at the example of Spain and what they have achieved. Look at what they have done in Spain and Portugal, for example, where wholesale electricity prices are at €60 to €70 per megawatt-hour, far below what we are at. Look at what Spain has done just since 2019, for example, where they have doubled their wind and solar capacity. They have added over 40 GW, cutting gas's influence on electricity prices by 75%. That is what they have done since 2019. We have more potential than they do, certainly in terms of wind, so why have we not done the same? While the Tánaiste has been in government, why have we not done it? If we had done that, we would not be in this situation of dependence that we are in at present. Spain has some of the lowest power prices in Europe. What do they have that we do not have such that they are able to do that? Of course, we should be doing this.

Ireland has enough wind to power the island and enough money to make it happen. That is a fact. What we are missing is the political leadership to get that job done. While Spain and Portugal have insulated their people from this global crisis in terms of energy prices, the Government has left Irish households exposed to the actions and the chaos being created by the whims of Trump. We should and could be an energy independent electro-state, but instead we are not in that situation. We need proper action and leadership on that.

I appeal to the Tánaiste to introduce a targeted energy credit. It makes sense, it is affordable and it can be done. It would make a big difference to people on low incomes, including low-paid workers who are not eligible for the fuel allowance. That would really lift people out of the difficulty they are in. The Government has failed to do that and it could do that.

Ruth Coppinger (Dublin West, Solidarity)
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It is a bit ironic that we are now paying the price for a horrific imperialist adventure by Trump and Netanyahu, which the Tánaiste and the Taoiseach have never once condemned. The Taoiseach spent a whole day in Washington and managed not to say one thing about the attack on Iran.

In relation to the emergency motion the Tánaiste is bringing through the Dáil, where is the emergency action for the disabled people who have lost out on €1,400 a year, the 320,000 people in arrears on their electricity who have been mentioned and the 180,000 in arrears on their gas? I will support this measure if it does anything to decrease prices for people. However, it is far from going to deal with the situation. We need emergency measures to lift the burden off the general population, not just hauliers and bus companies.

There was an academic on TV last night who was talking about people having become too reliant on these one-off measures and needing to be weaned off them. There seem to be some people living in an alternative universe, not realising the hardship that people have been going through in this country for the last number of months.

In relation to electricity, the ESB should be taken back into public ownership and it should be run on a not-for-profit basis, as it used to be. We need to bring down prices and the cost of living all across the board for ordinary people.

On price controls, groceries have gone through the roof. There is power under the Consumer Protection Act to immediately introduce maximum prices at affordable levels for necessities and food staples. Likewise, why not use this as an opportunity to introduce free public transport? It would be a huge benefit to people's pockets and also to the environment. Why is a cost-of-disability payment not being introduced? It should have been brought in immediately. I obviously welcome the measures for people on fuel allowance, but that is a limited number of people. Tens of thousands of people are suffering.

I am very concerned to hear that there will be backdated rebates for hauliers and bus companies. The books should be opened up. It should not be across the board. If they are needed, they could be given in a targeted fashion, but some people have been profiteering off the situation as well.

Richard Boyd Barrett (Dún Laoghaire, People Before Profit Alliance)
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Even before the Israeli and US illegal and bloody aggression against Iran and Lebanon, there was a cost-of-living crisis in this country that the Government was not acting in any serious way to address. We already had electricity prices that were approximately 25% higher than the rest of Europe. Gas prices had doubled over the previous five years. We have seen the price of groceries, etc., increase very significantly. In all of those areas, of course, massive profits have been recorded by the energy companies and the supermarket chains, and then we get this. The failure of the Government to condemn in clear and unequivocal terms Trump's bloody and illegal war is mirrored in the failure of the Government to seriously address the economic and financial consequences of their bloody warmongering on ordinary people, because not only are they raining down death, destruction and fire on the people of Iran, Lebanon, people of Palestine and the whole region, they are costing every person in this country money and the Government cannot even bring itself to condemn them and, indeed, continue to allow the US military to refuel at Shannon Airport. It is shameful. Would the Tánaiste let Putin into Shannon Airport? Of course he would not, and rightly so, yet the Americans are allowed to prosecute their war.

What the Tánaiste has offered here is better than nothing but it is late in the day on top of an existing crisis. What we have proposed is that the Government should help people with their arrears by giving them a €500 energy credit and introduce price controls to hold down petrol and diesel prices at €1.75 a litre, to hold down home heating oil at €1 per litre and to reduce the kilowatt-hour charges for gas and electricity.

John McGuinness (Carlow-Kilkenny, Fianna Fail)
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Thank you, Deputy.

Richard Boyd Barrett (Dún Laoghaire, People Before Profit Alliance)
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Can this be done? It is being done elsewhere in Europe, in the Czech Republic-----

John McGuinness (Carlow-Kilkenny, Fianna Fail)
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I call Deputy Stanley.

Richard Boyd Barrett (Dún Laoghaire, People Before Profit Alliance)
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I have five seconds left-----

John McGuinness (Carlow-Kilkenny, Fianna Fail)
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Oh.

Richard Boyd Barrett (Dún Laoghaire, People Before Profit Alliance)
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-----but now I do not, thanks to your interruption.

John McGuinness (Carlow-Kilkenny, Fianna Fail)
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It is gone now. I call Deputy Stanley.

Brian Stanley (Laois, Independent)
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The assistance being given on the cost of fuel will bring some relief but I would like to see it more targeted. The question is how we can target it in the short term.

There are middle-income areas who do not qualify for the fuel allowance. There is a particular cohort whose income is just over the limit and they will not benefit from the extra month of fuel allowance, although it is welcome.

The cost of home heating oil is an issue that is not being addressed and we are stuck with it for now. Many rural households out there, particularly in counties such as Laois, are dependent on home heating oil, unfortunately, for now. They are not going to feel any benefit from this, particularly the ones who are outside of the fuel allowance limits.

I welcome the VAT rebate being given to hauliers, but the same VAT rebate needs to be given to bus operators, who are mainly on fixed-price contracts. I would like the Tánaiste to note that a particular sector, including minibus and coach operators, have fixed-price contracts from the Department of education and from tour operators and they need the same VAT rebate as hauliers.

While I welcome the €235 million spent on the measure, I would like to see it more targeted. There is a question over how quickly this is going to kick in and the Tánaiste has admitted this. We need to see some action on this. Prices went up very quickly but as soon as this kicks in, we need to see the prices reduce.

I would have liked to see some specific measure for households in arrears on electricity and gas bills.

I will try to put this realistically in the context of what is happening. We need to move on energy independence. We may not be able to become totally independent - I understand that - but I would like us to be able to accelerate that and move towards a greater level. The red lights are flashing. We also need to do it for environmental reasons, given that the report yesterday said the globe is warming even faster than we had thought. For many good reasons, we need to accelerate and move towards energy independence with renewables.

Lastly, we need to clearly oppose this crazy war. It is absolutely crazy. It is an imperial war, it is an oil war----

John McGuinness (Carlow-Kilkenny, Fianna Fail)
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The Deputy should conclude.

Brian Stanley (Laois, Independent)
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-----and, as a small neutral country, we need to stand up and say, "Stop the madness".

Peadar Tóibín (Meath West, Aontú)
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Families are being crushed by this energy crisis. Small businesses are going to the wall. Carers cannot drive to mind the older people they are looking after. Workers cannot fill their car tanks, even just to get to work, and farmers' costs are spiking at a time when their produce prices are falling.

At the heart of this crisis are Government taxes, and no other political party is calling this out. For sure, the war in Iran has significantly accelerated the hardship, but the Government was already taking 60% to 65% out of petrol and diesel before the war. There were 320,000 people in energy arrears in this country before the war, and Irish electricity prices were the highest in Europe. Behind all the mealy-mouthed words from Government today, the painful reality for people in this country is that the Government is going to keep tax-gouging families.

Our parliamentary questions have shown that the Government took €4.1 billion in fuel taxes in 2024. Carbon taxes are at a record level, topping out at €1 billion. Even today, the Government's plans are to raise carbon tax on 1 May. That is a savagely damaging policy against the people of Ireland. In this crisis, the Government has already collected €120 million in extra taxes in the last four weeks. It is quids in with the crisis so far, and its increase on carbon taxes for the rest of the year will bring in €160 million. Those two together are more than €135 million that it is spending on this. We are asking the Government to reduce carbon taxes now and let people live.

Paul Gogarty (Dublin Mid West, Independent)
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A week on from previous statements, the Government has finally come up with some measures, so I will be supporting them, like others in this House. However, that does not mean I think they are in any way sufficient. Hauliers have been dealt with and there is the 2 cent measure coming tomorrow with respect to storage, but the reduction in excise duty on its own is not enough. The cost of fuel has gone up by more than the amount by which excise duty is going to be cut. People in vulnerable situations need support. We had a discussion earlier this year about the cost-of-living allowance that is needed for people with disabilities. One of the calls coming from advocacy groups was that the fuel allowance should be extended to people on disability-related payments and that the season would be lengthened to 32 weeks. In the context of this fuel crisis, that is a reasonable ask at this stage, as are measures that can also support middle-income earners, especially pensioners who are just over the threshold but are going to be hit by the fuel costs.

As others have mentioned, there are people who are dependent on home heating oil because they cannot get the piped gas. It is mainly in rural areas, but it also affects people in urban areas. In the longer term, as I mentioned when the Tánaiste was here previously, we absolutely need to move towards energy self-sufficiency and I would like to see that put on a wartime footing, with a five-year project rather than a 25-year project. For climate change reasons but especially for energy self-security, we need to move a lot faster than we are.

Ken O'Flynn (Cork North-Central, Independent Ireland Party)
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While I welcome some of the changes the Government is going to make, particularly the extension of the fuel allowance, we are giving with one hand and taking away with the other. At the start of this crisis, the price of diesel was €1.80 a litre. Today in Circle K, it is €2.28. The Government has already accumulated €120 million. This project is delivering a roughly €200 million package, so it is really costing the Government €80 million.

I was very disappointed with the comments of the Minister of State, Deputy Canney, earlier today outside this House when he stated that carbon tax is not even a tax. In fact, it is a tax, as the name suggests. He must be intoxicated by the leather of the ministerial car whose fuel he does not have to pay for because that is how far removed from reality the Government is. The reality is that people going to work tomorrow and the next day have no other choice. They cannot work from home, they are trying to do their best and these taxes ahead of us, and this reducing of 20 cent here and 20 cent there, will go nowhere.

The Government has completely forgotten about the taxi drivers of this country. It has 100% forgotten about them.

Michael Collins (Cork South-West, Independent Ireland Party)
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Regarding the proposals put before people today, first, we did not get enough time to debate the issue. Second, the measly bit of money the Government is throwing to the people is like crumbs off rich men's tables. It is not good enough, and the people of the constituency I represent and the people of Ireland are outraged to think farmers are only going to get 2 cent off a litre of green diesel and fishermen are the same. What does Government think they are, slaves to the people of this country? Does it have any respect for people out there?

In relation to the crisis with home heating oil, people cannot fill their tanks. These are all issues of fierce concern to people, and these people have been contacting me all day. I agree with the fuel allowance and the help the Government has given in that regard. I fully support that. However, there is a bigger issue here, which is that the Government has forgotten the people who elected it, that is, the people whose doors Government Deputies are going to be knocking on in the not-so-distant future.

Michael Fitzmaurice (Roscommon-Galway, Independent)
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I welcome some of the measures that have come, but there is a reality here. The Tánaiste spoke about Northern Ireland earlier. Those people are not bleeding as hard as the people here. The facts are that tonight, a litre of white diesel in the North costs the equivalent of €1.85, which is 40 cent less than here. There is a difference of €200 in the price of 500 litres of kerosene, while green diesel - it is red in the North - is €200 cheaper in the North. Let us concentrate on our own game.

I welcome what has been done for hauliers and the excise duty reduction, but what has Government done for agriculture? Does it not realise food is produced with tractors right around this country? For the agri-contractor sector and for farmers, what farmers have to pay is an absolute insult. Does the Government realise most people in rural Ireland, if they do not have a turf fire, use kerosene? Kerosene has never been as dear. What has been done for them? A measly 5 cent is going to be taken off between tomorrow and today. It is absolutely disgusting to see the way the agriculture sector has been treated.

Then we hear rural TDs talking about how the Government could not do anything about carbon tax. How is it that we can bring in legislation tomorrow for NORA? I have looked around Europe tonight, and there are different carbon taxes in every bit of it. The EU has told governments to ease the energy cost for everyone and gave that clear mandate last week to all leaders, but no, we will not touch the carbon tax and on 1 May, we will look at it again and add 2 cent more. Does the Government not realise that it gets more than the driver of a tractor agitating or ploughing or whatever it is at?

John McGuinness (Carlow-Kilkenny, Fianna Fail)
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Thank you, Deputy.

Michael Fitzmaurice (Roscommon-Galway, Independent)
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The Government ends up with €16 per hour into its paws, and it is not in the field. It is time the Government woke up and looked at what was going on.

Ken O'Flynn (Cork North-Central, Independent Ireland Party)
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I wish to move the Independent Ireland amendment. I forgot to mention it earlier.

John McGuinness (Carlow-Kilkenny, Fianna Fail)
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The Deputy cannot move the amendment because the Sinn Féin amendment has been moved. I call Deputy Devlin.

Cormac Devlin (Dún Laoghaire, Fianna Fail)
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I welcome the opportunity to examine this motion, which will deliver a measure of relief for hard-pressed families. The conflict in the Middle East is causing an extreme degree of volatility in the price of oil and other essential commodities. In the short time available to me this evening, I propose to focus on the domestic impact here in Ireland. I am sure we all hope the conflict will end as soon as possible, but it is clear a significant degree of disruption to supply lines has been caused and this will have an impact in the short term.

The changes being proposed by Government to reduce the price of a litre of diesel by 22 cent and petrol by 17 cent are very welcome and necessary. Hauliers are an essential part of the wider economy and must be supported, and the package for them is also welcome. I acknowledge the extension of the fuel allowance, which will give the most vulnerable families an extra €152.

As a state, we are in the fortunate position to be able to assist families. Across Europe, governments are facing much harder choices. I know that, like during Covid, the Government will not be found wanting if the crisis continues into the winter.

I welcome the Taoiseach's comments on improving energy security in this State, particularly in regard to progressing the LNG facility. This is an issue alongside the need for the widespread roll-out of solar and wind generation that I have raised on multiple occasions in this House. As an island, we are critically exposed. This LNG portal is badly needed to ensure a degree of security in what is an extremely volatile time.

Danny Healy-Rae (Kerry, Independent)
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I too welcome the package of €235 million. I am thankful for the reduction in white diesel for hauliers and the promised rebate that is to come. I also welcome the petrol reduction for all of those who are working hard and need their car to go to work.

I deplore the fact that people who need heating oil only get a reduction of 2 cent a litre, which is only €20 for a fill of a 1,000-litre tank. That is very hard.

I welcome the extension of the fuel allowance, but many people are not on the fuel allowance.

Many hauliers have a haulier’s licence and operate that way, but there are other hauliers who do not have a haulier’s licence and do not have to have it, but who supply their own products. Agricultural lorries transporting cattle will not get the diesel rebate either. I am hurting for those people.

Regarding green diesel for the tractor men, as the Ministers know, no tractor has gone inside a gap for the last three months, and now is the time that they are making a start. Because of the weather conditions, they could not do a bit until now, and there is a lot of work waiting. To offer them 2 cent or 3 cent of a reduction is totally unfair. I was brought up to believe that we should treat everyone fairly. Whatever way the Government could have got around that, it should have done something better for the tractor people. I include in that the industrial workers and fishermen. Those with any type of engine that uses green diesel are paying up to €1.68 a litre when it was 98 cent three weeks ago. That is an awful jump of 70 cent a litre.

The cost of electricity has gone up day by day since the Government closed Bord na Móna. This war might continue, and no one in here or outside can say it will or will not. I am asking the Government to review the rules it has made on turf cutting and ensure that people who have the facility, have a bog and can cut turf are allowed to cut it, whether it is to sell it or use it themselves. That has to be reviewed because of the cost of electricity. We may not have electricity.

I am also hurting because of the fact that there was no bother two or three weeks ago with Ireland supporting a loan of €1.8 billion to keep the war in Ukraine going, yet we cannot find enough money anywhere to help the tractor men who are using green diesel. The day Zelenskyy was here, we also gave him €125 million.

John McGuinness (Carlow-Kilkenny, Fianna Fail)
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I ask the Deputy to conclude. I call the Minister.

Peter Burke (Longford-Westmeath, Fine Gael)
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I thank Deputies for their robust engagement on this important issue. As the Tánaiste stated earlier, these excise reductions form part of an overall package that the Government has designed to provide immediate financial support to households. The excise rate changes will provide for VAT-inclusive, per-litre reductions of 15 cent per litre for petrol, 20 cent per litre for auto diesel and 3 cent per litre for marked gas oil, or green diesel. In addition to the NORA levy reduction of 2 cent, this will provide for an overall reduction of 17 cent on petrol, 22 cent on auto diesel and 5 cent on MGO.

While tax changes cannot fully absorb the recent energy shocks or market volatility, these changes will lessen the impact of fuel costs on consumers. This measure will be in place for a defined period of time, and the Government reserves the right and option to adjust these as circumstances evolve. This approach is in line with the European Council conclusions agreed in Brussels last week, and with the response of other EU member states.

I reiterate the Tánaiste's affirmation that the Opposition amendments cannot be accepted. The proposed amendments disregard the need for a long-term, economic and sustainable approach.

The measures announced today will provide significant mitigation against recent fuel price increases. It is not possible, using the tax system, to offset all of the recent increases, which are driven by market factors. These excise reductions, in conjunction with the NORA reduction and the changes to the fuel allowance and diesel rebate scheme, which has significantly increased by 60%, underwrite the supply lines. This really impacts on inflation for many of the groceries that we buy every single week. If we did not do this, it would have a significant impact on consumers. This will also benefit households at the pumps, given the various measures related to the NORA levy and excise. We must respect the fact that we are limited by the rates allowable under the energy tax directive and VAT directive.

Going by what the ESRI has said in relation to the most important deciles to benefit from budget 2026, there is an extension of the fuel allowance, which now covers 470,000 households. Many of the benefits of this were being operationalised in recent weeks. On 12 March, 50,000 households were brought into the net due to the change to the working family payment, and this was backdated to 1 January. The extension of four weeks, together with the increase in the eligibility criteria of over €1,000 in net income for those over 70, ensures that 370,000 households will benefit, and an additional €150 per month is also targeted at the most vulnerable in society.

In my view, the Government's first port of call is to ensure that, in a time of crisis, when we hit a significant shock in the economy, we first protect the most vulnerable in society. This is backed up by the ESRI, and it is what we are going after in the first instance. We will then go wider for the rest of the economy, thereby ensuring we are underwriting the support for supply chains through our haulage sector, which has seen an increase of 60% in the diesel rebate scheme, as well as the measures at the pumps. Critically, there have been other measures like the €250 million package and the reduction to 9% in VAT for electricity and oil, which ensures that every household in the country will save €100 per year.

Other countries in Europe, for example, Italy, Spain and the UK, are still grappling with changes. Many have not gone as far as Ireland has already gone at this juncture, with Spain looking to reduce its VAT rate to 10%, while Ireland has moved to 9% for electricity.

A critical point from our perspective is to ensure that any changes are affordable. We do not know the duration of this crisis. If we look at what the International Energy Agency has put clearly on the record, this could be a lot worse than what happened in the two crises of the 1970s, together with the challenge of the Ukraine shock, which is very significant.

There is one thing we know following the recent crises that we have faced in this economy. With Brexit, we met that challenge from a position of strength, and we came back stronger. When we hit the challenge of the global pandemic, we met that challenge from a position of strength, and we came back stronger as a government. When we hit double-digit inflation in November 2022, we also met it from a position of strength, and we came back stronger. Equally, by managing the economy well, we will meet this crisis from a position of strength, and we will come back stronger as a government, and critically, protect the most vulnerable along the way.