I thank Deputies for the opportunity to discuss the pressures Irish households are facing as a result of high energy costs. I have listened intently to the contributions this evening. I assure Deputies that the current crisis is of deep concern to the Government, as has been articulated very well by Government colleagues and, to be fair, Opposition colleagues this evening. I know everyone shares the Government's concern about the humanitarian impact of the conflict and our desire, as Deputy Callaghan said, to see a de-escalation. In addition to the significant humanitarian impacts, we have seen significant disruption and uncertainty, which has resulted in impacts on global energy supply and on us in Ireland as it has on every other country. This is not a matter unique to us. Energy prices and the impact this most recent conflict has had on them are of deep concern to me and to the broader Government. I assure people that the Government understands the pressures families and businesses are under. I have engaged today again with the Taoiseach and Tánaiste on a Government response to the areas that are under the most acute pressure. As the Taoiseach and Tánaiste outlined, this work will be finalised next week and we expect it to come to the Cabinet on Tuesday. It will set out the interventions we will make in a targeted and time-bound way that will assist those who need it most. We must also be aware that this situation is ever evolving. From the outset of the conflict, it has been clear that it presents serious challenges and risks from an energy perspective. At my request last week, the energy security group met to assess the implications of the conflict in the Middle East and the Gulf region and to ensure the Government is fully informed of ongoing developments in global energy markets. The group reviewed current supply and pricing conditions for oil, gas and electricity and heard from the fuel industry representative body. It was noted that appropriate contingency arrangements were in place across the energy sector. I have also written to retail electricity and gas suppliers, as well as to the Commission for Regulation of Utilities, CRU, and fuel suppliers to emphasise the importance of reducing the exposure of Irish consumers to price shocks that global uncertainty can create and is creating and to ensure Irish consumers are supported to the greatest possible extent throughout this uncertain period. However, Ireland faces particular challenges in energy costs as a result of long-standing factors, including our isolated island location, low levels of interconnection, our population settlements and historic reliance on fossil fuels that is diminishing year on year. Specifically in reference to fossil fuels, I am firmly of the belief that our island nation must continue to increase our renewable energy capacity and reduce the impact of fossil fuel prices and volatility on energy prices in Ireland. Last week, we reached a significant milestone of 8 GW of renewable energy and energy capacity installed in Ireland and we are already seeing the impact of renewables on prices with what energy renewables are producing. We must continue to accelerate that. I want to increase that by building more renewable capacity and more storage. We have more than 1 GW of long-duration battery storage, which helps us to distribute the energy at the appropriate times. We will do more, including the introduction of private wires, unprecedented investment in our grid of up to €18.9 billion, which will allow additional renewables to be built and the distribution of their energy into our system, and close collaboration with all of the sector. We need to see projects like the North-South interconnector built. It will bring average savings per household of more than €100 per annum. It is critical we do this. In addition, we are investing a record amount in home retrofitting and business supports. Like many Government Deputies and many of the Opposition, I am completely opposed to removing the carbon tax. Why do I say that? It is because since 2019, Governments have been able to provide 240,000 energy upgrades to homes. We are looking at permanent savings of up to €1,100. This year, we are targeting 73,000 home upgrades. We have changed our grants and made them more accessible. They are critical to ensuring households can have reduced energy bills and are more resilient against future shocks. Looking at this year, €558 million in Exchequer funding is being provided to home energy supports and business supports. That directly comes from the carbon tax. It is ring-fenced for that. Where would Sinn Féin get the money? Would it scrap the retrofit programme? These are permanent savings. I, like many in the Government and many of the Opposition parties, think we have a system under which carbon tax can be focused on those who need it most through such schemes as the warmer homes scheme, under which there were 13,000 more fully funded home upgrades this year. We will continue to do that. Our job is to accelerate it to protect households and families through future crises. The one thing we are sure of is that this will not be the last crisis, so we have to accelerate the deployment of renewables. We have to continue to invest in our grid. We have to continue to invest in retrofitting. We also have to protect those who need our assistance. That is why, as has been outlined clearly by the Taoiseach, and by Tánaiste earlier this evening, the Government will be bringing forward targeted, time-bound measures that will help households and businesses. That will be done next week, in a time-bound manner so that we can keep it under review. I hope, as has been mentioned already, that the crisis will de-escalate and we will see the normalisation of supply. On supply, we hold 90 days of stocks of oil, in line with our international commitments. NORA, which manages our State reserves, is also committed, through the International Energy Agency, IEA, announcement of a 400 million barrel release, to our equivalent of 1.6 million barrels. That contribution is approximately 10.5 days of supply. We are unquestionably unusually exposed to increases in the price of home heating oil because we are heavily reliant on kerosene for residential heating. Kerosene accounts for over 90% of home heating oil demand and about 30% of residential energy consumption, so it is a real issue. Ireland is also the largest user of kerosene for home heating in Europe. That really points to the areas we really need to assist people, as we have seen significant price increases. That also reflects the dispersed nature of our population, especially in rural areas. We import 80% to 90% of that kerosene, mainly from Britain and the EU, but they import that supply from the Middle East so there is disruption and a price pressure there.
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There is a price pressure there-----
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-----but what we will do, unlike Sinn Féin, is assess the situation, make sure the measures we bring forward are targeted and targeted at those who them most-----
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-----and we will actually do that. What we need to do while we are doing that is ensure we continue our retrofitting programme to deliver permanent savings for households. Significant grants are there to protect households. Some 240,000 have been retrofitted so far and we are targeting another 72,000 this year. Going by what Sinn Féin has said this evening and continually over the last few days, that whole scheme would be scrapped-----
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-----because it would not be able to fund it from anywhere else.
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Deputy Doherty, you have been 19 years as Opposition finance spokesperson and I suggest there is a reason for that-----
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There is a reason you have not actually been in government.
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Just relax a bit, will you? This is a serious issue.
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I think you have been 19 years in opposition, as of the last time I checked.
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Deputy Doherty is very excitable and I promise I will not interrupt him even though I might feel like I should. People will make up their own minds on what he is saying. There are many people out there who are vulnerable at the moment. Government is committed to assisting them and we will bring forward targeted measures - a number of measures - not just for households but for the sector as well. With that in mind, I met the Irish Road Haulage Association. I am meeting it tomorrow morning. I spoke with them at length last week as well. There are pressures also in relation to businesses and we need to focus this all in the round and that is exactly what we will do. While we do that we need to protect investment in our energy system, protect our economy and protect Exchequer funds as well. Deputy Doherty and his party cannot just make up Financial Resolutions on the back of an envelope and say they will scrap supports for households of up to-----
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-----€600 million. The energy affordability task force has met on a number of occasions and brought forward preliminary reports in advance of the last budget, where we made permanent reductions in VAT down to 9%. It will be meeting again tomorrow with me chairing and we will look at further measures we will bring forward this year post this crisis. These will be done in a structured way, in a sustainable way and not done by way of a knee-jerk reaction to curry support in other areas. We take this situation very seriously and that is why we will approach this situation in a serious and structured manner. We will bring forward supports next week for households and for businesses in a targeted, structured and sustainable way so we can continue to invest in things like home retrofitting and supports for small businesses, which Deputy Doherty would scrap.
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The Tánaiste said he moved the amendment. The Tánaiste did move the amendment.
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He did move the amendment at the start. I have a copy of his speech here.
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To be clear, the Tánaiste said to me that he moved the amendment.
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The Tánaiste said it to me directly, and Deputy Ó Muirí is here, that he had moved the amendment.
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