Louise O'Reilly (Dublin Fingal West, Sinn Fein)
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108. To ask the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection in view of his withdrawal of energy credits and the steady increase in households seeking financial support with energy costs, the additional supports or measures he will provide above what has already been committed to in Budget 2026 to address this rising need; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [62185/25]

Dara Calleary (Mayo, Fianna Fail)
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Energy credits are a matter for the Minister for Climate, Energy and the Environment.

The Government is committed to protecting vulnerable households from the impact of energy costs through a combination of financial supports, energy efficiency awareness initiatives and investment in programmes to improve the energy efficiency of the housing stock. In this regard as part of Budget 2026 the Government has provided significant targeted support to those people who most require help with their energy costs.

From January the Fuel Allowance will be increased by €5 per week to €38. This will support over 450,000 households who most require Government support with their energy costs.

Also, in recognition of the importance of helping low paid working families, the Fuel Allowance is extended to Working Family Payment recipients. This will benefit over 43,000 families and is a significant measure in tackling child poverty. This measure will be paid from March next year but their entitlement to the Fuel Allowance scheme will be backdated to January.

Also, from September 2026, those who move from Disability Allowance or Blind Pension to Employment will be able to retain the Fuel Allowance for 5 years.

The supports provided by the Government are cross-departmental and, in this regard, my Department is represented on the Energy Poverty Action Group, with the overall strategy to combat Fuel Poverty and Energy Poverty under the remit of the Department of Climate, Energy and the Environment.

Finally, my Department provides Additional Needs Payments as part of the Supplementary Welfare Allowance scheme to help meet essential expenses that a person cannot pay from their weekly income or other personal and household resources. Any person who considers that they may have an entitlement to an Additional Needs Payment is encouraged to contact their local community welfare service. There is a National Community Welfare Contact Centre in place - 0818-607080 - which will direct callers to the appropriate office. In addition, applications can be made online via www.mywelfare.ie.

I hope this clarifies the matter for the Deputy.