If a driver pays €60 for petrol or diesel, this Government takes roughly €40 off that so before the crisis hit, Ireland had some of the highest fuel costs in all of Europe. The Government could have chosen to deliver the maximum excise cut possible on diesel and petrol and remove excise entirely from home heating oil but it chose not to do that. Instead it chose to short-change people basically - to give with one hand and take it back with the other. Four weeks into the crisis, it only acted after a lot of relentless pressure from Sinn Féin and a very angry public that is desperately crying out for support. We got a package of half measures that had to be dragged out of the Government. I see commuters absolutely livid over this - travelling every day to from Wexford and Wicklow to Dublin and getting fleeced. We are talking about farmers getting fleeced while workers, drivers, bus operators and taxi drivers are still being hammered. Regarding home heating oil, the weather has taken a very cold turn today and sleet has been forecast. Two thirds of households in rural Ireland, including Wexford and Wicklow, rely on home heating oil to heat their houses but the Government even plans to increase the upcoming carbon tax. The price of a fill has doubled in a matter of weeks. A measly cut of €2 is basically an insult. We are talking about maybe a €20 reduction in a fill that can cost up to €1,700, which is a massive amount, so this is really a drop in the ocean compared with the surge in prices that workers and families are being forced to pay as well. The Government could have adopted Sinn Féin's proposal to completely remove excise on home heating oil because people are really struggling. We are talking about 320,000 people who are now saying that they cannot afford to pay their electricity bills. One in four people are saying they cannot afford to pay their gas bills. What the people need really are meaningful supports. I was contacted today by bus and coach operators-----

Sentiment score: -0.13

I think I have another half minute.

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