Ceisteanna ó Cheannairí - Leaders' Questions
Dail Éireann — 2026-03-19
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Cian O'Callaghan (SD), Dublin Bay North

In December there were 320,000 households in arrears on their electricity bills. They need a targeted energy credit and the Tánaiste is saying he cannot do it because we are coming into summer. Is that for real? Then the Tánaiste is saying that he cannot predict the future. We are not asking him to predict the future. We are asking him to recognise the reality people are living in now and that things have been getting worse day after day, and he is delaying on this. Does the Tánaiste not recognise the difficulty individuals and households are in, in that they cannot heat their homes, cannot getting get their home-heating oil tank filled and that they are making decisions as to whether they can put the heating on or go to the supermarket to get the groceries? Does the he not recognise that and that every day he delays and every day he makes excuses is pushing people further and further into hardship and poverty? Will measures be brought in on Tuesday? Is the Tánaiste effectively ruling out an energy credit? Do I take that from the Tánaiste's comments?
There will be measures brought in on Tuesday. What will those measures be? Will they help the 320,000 households already in electricity arrears? Will they be targeted? The Tánaiste has often said we need to have targeted measures. Will they be targeted at those who need them most? Will there be measures on the excise tax on petrol and diesel?

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Record URI: https://data.oireachtas.ie/akn/ie/debateRecord/dail/2026-03-19/debate/main
Retrieved: 2026-08-14T04:54:45+00:00
Sitting date: 2026-03-19