Brian Ó Domhnaill (Fianna Fail)

I wish to raise with the Minister of State the electricity charges being imposed on the business sector, in particular small and medium sized enterprises and the affect these are having in terms of not aiding these businesses to become more competitive.

I would like first to focus on general electricity charges and the disconnection by the ESB of customers who are unable to pay their electricity bills, which is happening not alone in the business sector but in the domestic sector. It is disgraceful that this is happening throughout the country. I know of a number of families in my constituency who, through no fault of their own, were unable to pay their bills resulting in their electricity being disconnected and their having to pay a reconnection fee. I will give an example of another domestic connection in respect of which the ESB issued an invoice. While this issue is not directly connected to the motion I have tabled I would like to mention it. The cost of a 15 MW domestic connection is approximately €2,200. It is wholly unreasonable in the current climate that the ESB, a semi-State company, is asking individuals who are struggling to obtain mortgages to build or purchase homes to pay €2,200 towards the cost of providing a connection to their homes.

I will provide some background in terms of where the ESB is coming from. The ESB, a semi-State company, should be providing incentives to the business sector which is trying to create jobs and to help turn around our economy. The ESB, not necessarily the Government, should be providing this incentive to the SME sector in which many of our population are employed. I ask that the Government negotiate with the ESB to try to devise a scheme to reduce electricity tariffs for small and medium-sized enterprises for at least 24 months or until the worst of the recession is over. A similar scheme operates in parts of eastern Europe. I understand the provision of direct State subsidies requires EU approval. State aid rules, however, provide some latitude for member states which wish to seek a derogation and provide a subsidy for the electricity supplier where a reduced level of electricity supply is provided for the SME sector. Certain member states are providing such a service and development agencies in some of eastern European countries are targeting Irish SMEs, with a view to persuading them to move to eastern Europe on the basis that they would have free electricity for a two year period.

We must improve business competitiveness by addressing the high and sometimes unbearable energy costs for small and medium-sized enterprises. The ESB is a semi-State company which makes massive profits. Its chief executive officer earned in the region of €600,000 last year. We must ensure some of the company's profits are redistributed to SMEs by reducing the cost of electricity to the sector.

As a corollary to this, the fees the ESB charges for domestic connections must also be addressed. While the two issues I raise are not directly connected, they are a cause of concern to many citizens. I appreciate the Minister of State may not be able to provide a conclusive response but hope the matter will be considered and, at a minimum, the Minister for Communications, Energy and Natural Resources, Deputy Ryan, will meet the CEO of the ESB to discuss establishing a mechanism to provide support for the SME sector. The sector consists of local businesses which provide jobs and the State's tax base. I hope these steps will be taken. I ask the Minister of State to convey my comments to the Minister at an early date.