Finance Bill 2026: Second Stage
Seanad Éireann — 2026-07-02
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Sarah O'Reilly (AON), Agricultural Panel

I thank the Minister of State very much for coming into the House. I welcome the extension of the reduction in excise duty.
One of the fundamental problems in this country is that the Government is taxing fuel too heavily. While the Government has extended the reduction in excise rates, it has only kicked the can further down the road until 1 August. It still plans to increase excise duty on the cost of petrol and diesel five times before the end of the year. It should be telling people to enjoy the one-month extension because they will have to empty their pockets come wintertime.
The Government remains one of the biggest drivers of high prices. Diesel costs have risen dramatically over recent years and this has pushed up not just transport costs but the price of every item in our shops. Each family in the country is paying €3,000 more per year for exactly the same goods they were buying ten years ago. The price of 1 kg of chicken breasts was €5 in 2022 and is now €11. It has more than doubled in four years. That might not mean much to Ministers on €200,000 a year but for the average family it is an insurmountable increase. The Tánaiste said retailers should pass on lower wholesale prices to customers. That is unbelievable when this Government takes more than 50% in tax on fuel. A person filling their tank is spending more on tax than the cost of the fuel itself.
The answer to a cost-of-living crisis is not simply to collect more tax. This Government has shown it does not spend public money efficiently. Departmental budgets are routinely exceeded while there are waste overruns of hundreds of thousands, and sometimes millions, of euro. I will give an example. Years ago when I was raising four boys alone and working and running a car I begrudged every penny I gave over in taxes to the government. When you hear of waste and overruns you know would have spent that money really well and it is really hard to take. I have been there. I have been poor and I know what that frustration is like. This Government needs to do what the rest of the country does and learn to live within its means. The pain the people tried desperately to convey in the springtime has eased and the Minister of State must acknowledge that it has eased because of the measures the Government has taken, but it is going to systematically undo them before the end of the year. The frustration of the people was palpable. Let us admit fuel taxes imposed went way too far. Kerosene, petrol and diesel need to be affordable and I ask the Government to remember that in September. Carbon tax needs to be stopped and excise duty must be reduced. I advise the Government to listen to the people.

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Record URI: https://data.oireachtas.ie/akn/ie/debateRecord/seanad/2026-07-02/debate/main
Retrieved: 2026-08-14T04:55:09+00:00
Sitting date: 2026-07-02