Mary Lou McDonald (Dublin Central, Sinn Fein)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

337. To ask the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection the steps she is taking to protect vulnerable persons from the risk of fuel and energy poverty owing to the rising cost of fuel and electricity; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [49477/21]

Heather Humphreys (Cavan-Monaghan, Fine Gael)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

The Government is committed to protecting vulnerable households from the impact of energy costs through a combination of supports, energy efficiency awareness initiatives and investment in programmes to improve the energy efficiency of the housing stock.

With regard to income supports my Department provides a range of schemes to assist with energy costs. These include -

- The Fuel Allowance which is a payment of €28 per week for 28 weeks (giving a total per recipient of €784 each year) from October to April (estimated to cost €300 million in 2021).

- Electricity or gas allowances under the Household Benefits scheme (at an estimated cost in 2021 of €195 million).

- A special heating supplement under the Supplementary Welfare Allowance scheme.

- Exceptional needs payments to help meet an essential once-off cost which an applicant is unable to meet out of his/her own resources.

In Budget 2021, the Government targeted one third of carbon tax revenues to go towards boosting the incomes of the poorest in our society. Based on ESRI research, three key DSP payments were targeted for increases in the budget as a result - the Fuel Allowance, the Qualified Child Allowance and the Living Alone Allowance. Accordingly, with effect from January 2021, I increased the Fuel Allowance by €3.50 per week to €28 for a period of 28 weeks.

The Deputy will appreciate that provision of income support is only part of the answer in terms of addressing energy costs. One of the best ways to tackle energy costs in the long term is to improve the energy efficiency of the dwelling through proper building and household insulation.

This year funds raised through the carbon tax will again support targeted social welfare and other initiatives to alleviate fuel poverty and ensure a just transition. In this regard, in budget 2022, the Government will be considering how it can support people on low incomes and those on social welfare payments. Any such measures can only be considered while taking account of the overall budgetary context and the availability of financial resources.

I trust that this clarifies the matter for the Deputy.