Fuel Protests: Statements
Seanad Éireann — 2026-04-14
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Garret Kelleher (FG), Industrial and Commercial Panel

Tá an t-ádh linn go bhfuil cónaí orainn sa tír seo, atá ina poblacht agus ina tír daonlathach. Tá an t-ádh linn go bhfuil rogha againn gach cúig bliana, ar a laghad, faoin dream a theastaíonn uainn a bheith sa Rialtas ag oibriú ar ár son. Ní fíor é sin i ngach tír ar fud an domhain, áfach. Is cuid lárnach den daonlathas é an ceart chun agóide, go síochánta, agus caithfimid an ceart sin a chaomhnú. Tá sé sin feicthe againn i rith na seachtaine ach is léir gur thrasnaigh na hagóideoirí línte i gcásanna airithe. Ba cheart dúinn go léir a bheith buartha mar gheall ar an mbagairt sin don daonlathas, is cuma más ar son nó i gcoinne an Rialtais atá muid.
It is important not to lose sight of the fact that the primary cause of the escalation of fuel prices globally was the ongoing conflict in the Middle East, something which is beyond our control. At this point, nobody can say with any certainty how long the conflict will last, or the extent to which it will escalate, both of which have huge bearings on the appropriate Government response and the implications of the response on budgetary commitments made. One thing which is certain, however, is that blockading our refinery and fuel depots is not the way to go. This only exacerbated an already difficult situation and hurt everybody, particularly our most vulnerable. While it is important to defend and respect the right of people to protest, as I said, no Government can yield to unelected, self-appointed people, however well-intentioned, in deciding vital national policy. It is the very antithesis of democracy when sectional interest groups demand that their interests be served first, without due regard for the interests of everybody else. We cannot allow this to be accepted and we all need to stand up for our democracy.

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Source: Houses of the Oireachtas. Licensed under CC BY 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). The Official Report is revised after first publication; the fetch timestamp below identifies the version quoted.

Record URI: https://data.oireachtas.ie/akn/ie/debateRecord/seanad/2026-04-14/debate/main
Retrieved: 2026-08-14T04:54:48+00:00
Sitting date: 2026-04-14