I move: To delete all words after "Dáil Éireann" and substitute the following: "notes that: — the conflict in the Middle East has, once again, exposed the vulnerability of the Irish economy, and Irish society more generally, to imported fossil fuels; — these strategic dependencies have major macroeconomic implications, the risks to macroeconomic and fiscal stability cannot be ignored; — at a minimum, the large upward shift in energy prices is likely to impart a stagflationary impulse to the global economy, a combination of lower levels of economic activity alongside higher inflation; — in response, the Government has taken appropriate and timely action to provide relief for households and businesses; — the total budgetary cost of these support measures is of the order of €750 million this year, this is one the largest interventions of any country in the European Union, these measures reduce the annual rate of inflation in April, May, June and July by about 0.6 percentage points; — these measures have cut Excise Duty on diesel by 32 cent per litre, and 27 cent on petrol, including the reduction in the National Oil Reserves Agency levy, reduced Excise Duty on green diesel by 7.4 cent per litre, increased repayments under the Diesel Rebate Scheme, and extended the Fuel Allowance to the end of April; — the Government has also agreed to delay the increase in carbon tax to later in the year, and is introducing support schemes for the transportation and agricultural sectors, in total, these measures represent a significant investment of financial resources to support households and businesses, and will remain in place until 31st July, 2026; and — the Government published its Medium-Term Fiscal and Structural Plan (MTP) in December 2025, setting out a medium-term fiscal strategy based on three core pillars, sustainability, resilience and readiness; recognises that: — a package worth €750 million of supports has been introduced by the Government within the framework of the Government's MTP; — the MTP provides an appropriate fiscal framework that allows for the achievement of the Government's overarching aim to improve people's lives in a sustainable way; — by setting an overall medium-term expenditure path, the design of this framework provides Government with the flexibility to respond to challenges, such as, the impact of the conflict in the Middle East on households and businesses, in a timely and proportionate manner, alongside the operation of automatic stabilisers; — it sets out the Government's commitment to a balanced and sustainable approach to overall fiscal policy, ensuring we continue to target budget surpluses over the medium-term, and set aside some of the windfall to prepare for the future; — the MTP supports progress on implementing the key social and economic priorities, while delivering on our commitment to sustainable public finances; — it demonstrates the Government's commitment to using the resources of the State to improve people's lives in a sustainable way, it will act as the framework within which Government decisions will be taken during its term in office, it focuses on delivery, and allows for significant public resources to be directed at improving public services over a five-year period; — it ensures that we have had the agility to respond, swiftly and forcefully, to help households, firms and sectors when necessary; — consideration of any trigger points must be balanced in certain instances against the time lag inherent in economic data, which could delay timely Government responses; — the Irish economy is facing its second fossil fuel shock in less than five years; — fossil fuel dependence, especially imported fossil fuels, is a major economic vulnerability; — analytical work will be undertaken by the Department of Finance to set out the key macroeconomic principles that should guide the medium-term transition to manage Ireland's strategic import dependencies; and — the Government has also established the National Energy Affordability Taskforce to identify, assess and implement measures that will enhance energy affordability for households and businesses while delivering key renewable commitments and protecting security of supply and economic stability; and acknowledges that: — the geopolitical and economic outlook continues to be highly uncertain; — in the Department of Finance's reference scenario, set out in the Annual Progress Report inflation is projected to average 3.3 per cent this year, 1.5 percentage points higher than assumed at budget time but still significantly lower than the 8.1 per cent rate recorded in 2022, after the last energy price shock; — the economy is still expected to grow this year, albeit at a slower pace than previously forecast, and Government has committed to a range of temporary measures to mitigate the impact of increases in energy prices on households and businesses; — the overall approach to budgetary policy must remain balanced and sustainable over the medium-term; and — the Government will consider the continued impact of the energy shock on households, and make proportionate decisions in the forthcoming Budget within the parameters of the appropriate fiscal strategy set out in the MTP." I thank Independent Ireland for putting this motion before the House today. I am glad to be able to take this matter and give the opening response on behalf of the Government. At the outset, a lot of the opening contributions by Independent Ireland and Deputy Lawless put the proposition that the Government was cheering on inflation because Government benefited from it in some way. That is certainly not the case. Across the board, where we have inflation, it puts pressure on people's real living standards. It also puts pressure on Government expenditure. Overall, it puts significant pressure on the objective of the Government to try to improve people's incomes and capacity to spend. In fact, one of the key objectives of the Government is to try to take any steps we can that would actually see inflation addressed, not increased. While there may have been an increased take in relation to fuel, the Government has taken two steps now with two packages to reduce the excise on fuel, thereby seeing a significant reduction in State income from that. Of course, as with every other sector of society, we see inflation impact on the expenditure of the Government. In relation to the economy and, in particular, families, it puts increased pressure on people. The objective of the Government is to try in every way possible to support people's real living standards. We do not want to see inflation. Indeed, the steps we have taken have been to try to address that challenge and the impact it has been having on people. The Government opposes the motion tabled by Independent Ireland. The ongoing conflict in the Middle East has once again exposed the vulnerability of the Irish economy to imported fossil fuels. According to the International Energy Agency, IEA, we now face a global energy crisis greater than the 1970s oil crisis and the Ukraine war combined. Like the rest of the world, energy price spikes and price volatility have directly impacted Irish businesses and consumers. This raises both short-term and long-term issues. In the immediate term, the Government recognises the pressures and uncertainty this has generated for Irish households and for key sectors of the economy. It is for this reason that we have introduced a package of supports worth €750 million, among the largest package of any EU member state. Longer term, our strategic dependency on fossil fuels has major macroeconomic and fiscal implications. The evidence from across Europe is clear. Moving towards domestic sources of renewable energy increases our energy security, boosts competitiveness and reduces the burden on ordinary people during shocks like this. This is why the Government is investing record levels of funding in domestic energy infrastructure. Our ability to implement both short-term relief measures and the longer term investments needed to address this issue permanently is due to our careful management of the public finances over many years. However, the relatively good position of the public finances cannot be taken for granted. There are well-known vulnerabilities in our tax base, particularly surrounding corporation tax. The Government has been effectively managing these risks by continuing to invest in critical infrastructure while also saving for the future through the Future Ireland Fund and the Infrastructure, Climate and Nature Fund. These investments will allow us to navigate the structural issues we face, such as ageing and the energy transition, by making our economy more resilient and competitive in the longer term. As we look to the future, it is impossible to predict how external shocks will evolve or what new challenges will emerge. This extreme uncertainty highlights the critical importance of maintaining a sustainable budgetary strategy that allows for a rapid and flexible Government response in times of need. In December, the Government published the medium-term fiscal and structural plan, which sets out a medium-term strategy based on three core pillars of sustainability, resilience and readiness. The medium-term plan provides a broad fiscal framework which allows the Government to achieve its aim of improving people's lives in a sustainable way. By setting out an overall medium-term expenditure path, this framework provides the Government with the flexibility to respond to challenges in a timely and proportionate manner. At the same time, it supports the Government's commitment to balanced and sustainable fiscal policy, ensuring we continue to target budget surpluses over the medium term while investing money in the two funds to pay for future costs. The medium-term plan ensures that we have had the ability to respond swiftly and decisively to help households, firms and sectors whenever necessary. For example, the recent supports we introduced operate within the framework of the medium term plan. These supports include €750 million worth of measures focused on mitigating the impact of high energy costs on households and businesses. These measures reduced the annual rate of inflation in April, May, June and July by about 0.6%. We have cut excise duty on diesel by 32 cent per litre and 27 cent per litre for petrol, including the reduction in the NORA levy. We have also reduced excise duty on green diesel by 7.4 cent per litre. We increased repayments under the diesel rebate scheme and we extended the fuel allowance to the end of April. The Government has also agreed to delay the increase in carbon tax to later in the year and is introducing support schemes for the transportation, agriculture and fisheries sectors. In total, these measures represent a significant investment of financial resources to support households and businesses. These interventions build on permanent, targeted supports we introduced as part of budgets 2025 and 2026, including a 9% VAT rate for gas and electricity, increases in core welfare rates, higher child support payments and increases and extensions to the fuel allowance. This targeted and practical support package ensures that those exposed to fuel increases will receive meaningful assistance. In addition to the wide-ranging support already provided by the Government, we recognise that more needs to be done to improve energy affordability, sustainability, and security into the future. Ireland's vulnerability to external energy price shocks is in large part a consequence of our reliance on imported fossil fuels. Reducing this dependence will minimise our exposure to shifts in the international environment and strengthen energy security over the medium and longer term. As such, the Government is making significant investments in renewable energy and grid infrastructure, as well as implementing supports to improve the energy efficiency of our homes and workplaces. Ireland recently achieved 8 GW of installed onshore renewable electricity capacity, a clean energy milestone which marks a significant step towards energy efficiency and security. Budget 2026 also allocated a record €640 million for Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland, SEAI, retrofit schemes, allowing us to target 73,000 home energy upgrades over the course of this year. This includes €340 million for the warmer homes scheme, which provides fully funded upgrades for those in energy poverty. These investments are making Irish homes more sustainable and energy-efficient, reducing our reliance on fossil fuels and lowering energy costs for households. We will continue to scale up that investment and accelerate delivery. In June of last year we established the national energy affordability task force to identify and implement measures to enhance energy affordability for households and businesses. The task force provides a co-ordinated and coherent whole-of-government response to the energy crisis, aligned with programme for Government commitments as well as longer-term objectives on energy affordability and security. The task force is preparing an energy affordability plan as well as co-ordinating the national response to the energy shock arising from the conflict in the Middle East. It is also worth acknowledging that the Irish economy has remained remarkably resilient in the face of a series of external shocks. Our unemployment rate has remained below 5% for four years, consistent with full employment. Economic growth is expected to continue this year, albeit at a slower pace than previously forecast. We cannot take this economic strength for granted. Risks remain and the outlook continues to be highly uncertain, shaped by factors outside of our control. Accordingly, the Government will continue to take a flexible approach to the current energy crisis, while remaining fiscally and economically responsible. Our fiscal strategy provides a framework for this approach. It ensures that we have had the ability to respond to challenges quickly and appropriately, while maintaining the sustainability of the public finances and investing in the long term.

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