Fidelma Healy Eames (Fine Gael)

I call on the Minister for Finance to urgently consider ways to reduce the cost of doing business in this country. In that context, I refer, in particular, to the rising price of diesel and how this is impacting on business. I call on the Green Party to consider this matter. We must examine ways to reduce the excise duty on diesel in order that we might get the country moving again. I spoke to wholesalers of diesel in Galway who indicated that their output has decreased by 10%, even though the cost of diesel is rising, because business is falling off. The Government takes in more than €1 billion each year in excise duty.