Damien English (Meath West, Fine Gael)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 175 and 193 together.

The Government is very aware of the impact of rising prices on Irish businesses.

As Chair of the Retail Forum, I have heard first-hand about the challenges which retail businesses, including food retailers, are facing.

Energy costs are one of the prime factors in the increase in business costs. Given that Ireland is a price taker on international energy markets, the Government has no statutory function in the monitoring or setting of these prices. However, Government has put in place a suite of targeted measures aimed at reducing the burden of these cost pressures, both for businesses and households. Given the volatility of fuel prices, it is important that measures are sustainable and targeted.

The Government has implemented several measures to help ease the impact on enterprises of energy price increases including:

- a reduction in the rate of VAT on gas and electricity from 13.5% to 9% until the 31^stof October;

- a temporary reduction in the excise duties charged by 20 cent per litre of petrol, 15 cent per litre of diesel, and 2 cent in the excise duty charged on marked gas oil;

A range of cross-sectoral supports and grants to mitigate the effects of rising energy costs on households and businesses are available.

Businesses can view the supports on my Department’s website at enterprise.gov.ie/en/What-We-Do/Supports-for-SMEs/Energy-supports/Energy-supports-for-business.html

Loans are available for businesses absorbing the numerous economic shocks of recent years. The Strategic Banking Corporation of Ireland offers the Brexit Impact Loan Scheme, offering loans from €25,000 to €1.5m, and the Credit Guarantee Scheme for businesses responding to the impact of COVID-19. These loan facilities may also be helpful to businesses struggling with increased energy costs.

Microenterprises can also avail of loans of up to €25k from Microfinance Ireland which they may not be able to avail of from commercial lenders.

Separately, my Department is encouraging and supporting firms to make investments in increased energy efficiency and a reduced carbon footprint, through a number of measures available through SEAI, including direct grants such as the support scheme for renewable heat, project assistance grants, the EXEED grant scheme, tax incentives available through the Accelerated Capital Allowance, and funding for energy audits. As an energy intensive sector, engaging with these supports is vital for retail for now and for the future.

Earlier this year, I established a Working Group on the Green Transition under the Retail Forum to work with the sector to support its transition to become a sustainable sector. As a first step, I would encourage all retailers to complete the Climatetoolkit4business to assess their carbon emissions and access supports to reduce their carbon footprint. The toolkit is available on my Department’s website.

Through our Local Enterprise Offices the Green for Micro initiative offers mentoring to micro-enterprises looking to become greener. It offers green transition advice and technical support to a wide range of micro-enterprises with 10 or fewer employees, including those operating in the retail sector. This support is free of charge for eligible enterprises and represents the potential for increased efficiencies within companies that adopt these principles.

Additionally, the main purpose of this year’s budget will be to address the rising cost of living in the country. Budget 2023 will provide an overall package of €6.7 billion, representing additional public spending of €5.65 billion and taxation measures amounting to €1.05 billion (an increase of €2.2 billion against what was originally budgeted).

I will forward a copy of this correspondence to the Department of Finance also in relation to items raised which fall under the responsibility of that Department.