Electricity Regulation (Amendment) Bill 2026: Second Stage [Private Members]
Dail Éireann — 2026-05-12
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Ken O'Flynn (II), Cork North-Central

I thank my colleagues in Sinn Féin for introducing this Bill. It is a very good Bill and works quite well. I was kind of shocked when I was reading it because I wondered should this not have been done a long time ago by previous Governments. I welcome it in that sense.
The cliché every Member in this House is using is the phrase "heating or eating", but that is the truth. That is what is happening in Cork, Dublin, Donegal, Galway, Kilkenny - anywhere in the country. People are choosing between heating and eating. Recently, I visited a gentleman's house where they had one bar on the fire and were wrapped in blankets. He is afraid to turn on the heating in his house. In my constituency, there are many families leaving their kids in bed late on the Saturday and on the Sunday to ensure that they do not have to turn on the heating in the house because that is how difficult it is for them.
I know the Minister of State is scrolling through his phone. I am sure he is very busy there, but the other thing is that-----

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Record URI: https://data.oireachtas.ie/akn/ie/debateRecord/dail/2026-05-12/debate/main
Retrieved: 2026-08-27T06:54:49+00:00
Sitting date: 2026-05-12