Ar an gcéad dul síos, gabhaim buíochas leis an gCeann Comhairle, an Teachta Ní Mhurchú. I thank the Ceann Comhairle for choosing this Topical Issue this morning. The power up grant was introduced following budget 2025 as an apparent replacement for the Government's refusal to reduce VAT rates. However, the criteria the Department laid down to local authorities for this grant have proven unworkable and unfair and leave many businesses locked out of the scheme. It is ironic that this scheme is called power up when so many businesses are struggling to keep their power on, pardon the pun. I congratulate the Minister of State, Deputy Dillon, on his appointment. I hope he will change this. Simple issues like the classification of businesses at application stage should have been changed by now. The first roll-out of this grant scheme was known as the increased cost of business, ICOB, grant. When issues arose with that, they should have been addressed by the Department before the second scheme. Now, the power up scheme has been rolled out. Why will the Department not simplify these schemes? They are rolled out with a big fanfare - they are welcome, and I welcome them - but they need to be accessed by businesspeople who are struggling, many of whom are locked out of them. For example, some post offices in my constituency got three rounds of cost of business support grants while others have been excluded purely because of misleading information on the application forms. The Department has not reopened the portal to allow businesses to reclassify their business correctly and avail of the grants. That is unfair to the people who are locked out just because of a name or a criterion. Another issue in cases with which I have engaged are instances where a business pays its rates to the business property owner. That property owner in turn pays rates to the county council, as is correct, but there is no way for the person renting the businesses, who pays their rent and rates, to access the grant. That is totally unfair. The developer does not need it because he gets his rates anyway but the businessman is struggling to keep the doors open. He pays his rates to the property owner; sometimes there might be joint tenants in different parts of the building, so it is common. Surely, that must be tweaked to allow those people to get access to the scheme. A plethora of businesses, such as launderettes, hair and beauty salons, post offices, filling stations and small hotels, are disallowed completely. These are just some examples of the businesses in my constituency that have been in touch with me about the scheme. It is not fair either to the good officials on Tipperary County Council and councils across the country who are trying to manage this scheme. They deal with frustrated business owners who are struggling to keep the lights on and the doors open, pay wages, VAT, tax and insurance and also pay rent to landlords. They are upset and annoyed, and often their disappointment and frustration can be taken out on the officials in question. It is unfair across the board. The Minister, Deputy Burke, said before the election that this scheme would have to be reviewed and that it would be up to the new Government to review it. The ball is in the Minister or State's court now. I know he has an understanding of this issue. I have worked with him in the past. It needs to be simplified and made fair and accessible for all types of businesses. It must not be a case of one post office, shop or hotel getting access to the scheme and others being excluded. That is discriminatory and unfair. It beggars belief that in three roll-outs of this scheme, the Department has not corrected the anomalies or made an effort to ensure fairness, transparency and honesty for ordinary, hard-pressed businesspeople.

Sentiment score: 0.02

I welcome the positive response from the Minister of State, but it needs to be dealt with. It is simply unfair that, for instance, the post office in Clonmel is getting the grant, while those in Fethard, Ballingarry or Killenaule are not. Small businesses in Ardfinnan and Clogheen might be getting it while those in Caisleán Nua, Ballyporeen and Cahir are not. I welcome the amount of money involved and the number of businesses that got the grant, but there is little solace for those who have been locked out of the scheme. The power up grant is a turn-off for those people. They are trying their best to access it. They are dealing with the county council. I again thank the officials who are helpful to them. People's frustration is palpable. They have been locked out because of a reclassification and incorrect criteria in the first instance. They did what they were asked to do. Across the board, this should be clear-cut. I wonder whether some of these schemes are designed to ensure that we hold on to the money. Obviously, the pot of money is not big enough and we make it more difficult for people. Businesspeople are at their wits' end trying to do the books, keep their places safe and clean, meet health and safety and other regulations, pay wages, PRSI, VAT and insurance and meet the rising costs. These schemes only tinker around with the costs involved. The real problem is that the Government is not tackling the ESB or the energy companies. We have the second highest energy prices in Europe. That is unbelievable. We know the difficulties with the ESB, and I compliment everyone on their sterling work to get power back on for people. The CEO of the company has stated that it might increase prices. This is another body blow to the businesses to which I refer. The ESB cannot be allowed to increase prices. It has insurance to cover its costs. It also has massive profits, which we have seen over the past decade. It has made gigantic profits. Business owners must have a fair and palatable scheme that is easily accessible. They are busy people. Many times they make these applications at night or when they are supposed to be having downtime with their families. They are trying to keep the doors open ag obair go han-chrua ar fad. It is very difficult for them to get onto these schemes. Some of them just give up and instead of being a power up grant, it is a complete turn-off.

Sentiment score: 0.18