Eugene Murphy (Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

This morning I was informed that the price of fuel will increase by 7.5 cent per litre on the wholesale market. This will mean a 9 cent increase at the pumps within 48 hours. I predict that by St. Patrick's Day we will have passed the €2 mark. We understand much of this has to do with the very unstable situation in eastern Europe, which seems to be getting worse. Whatever happens, and we all hope there will be peace as quickly as possible, we are still months away from the stabilisation of fuel prices. This will hit people throughout the country in urban and rural areas. In rural areas, where we do not have the transport network, it will really come down very heavily on families in particular. I know this is difficult for the Government but I suggest we should look at trying to freeze fuel prices for three months because it is a huge crisis. This will have a knock-on effect on food prices, as we all know. I understand fully the difficulty for the Government. I understand it is a massive challenge. I accept that we will all have to suffer a little if we are to stand with the Ukrainian people, which we all want to do. At home the time has come to look seriously at freezing fuel prices for a couple of months at least. I know it is difficult because the revenue is needed for other areas but we need to do something. We will have a terrible crisis here in a very short time if we do not do something.