I congratulate the Minister and the Minister of State on their moves and in particular the Minister of State, Deputy Carroll MacNeill, on her promotion. I look forward to working with both of them and I pay them every good wish.

My question relates to the plethora of measures the Government has introduced but looking to the future and to the fact that this inflationary cycle does not seem to be moving particularly fast. Is the Government considering further anti-inflationary measures?

I propose to take Questions Nos. 68, 110, 157 and 237 together.

I thank the Deputy for his good wishes, and I look forward to working with him. It is important to note that from the outset the Government has acted forcefully and decisively to help ease the burden of inflation on households and businesses across the country. Budget 2023 was a cost-of-living budget, incorporating a total package of €11 billion with the focus on protecting the most vulnerable from rising costs. This built on some €3 billion in measures introduced by the Government over the past year. It would be premature to take a decision on further policy measures before a full evaluation can be made of the performance of the measures currently in place, the outlook for inflation this year and, indeed, the prospects for the public finances.

I would caution that excessive or poorly designed fiscal policies could backfire. In this regard, it is crucial that budgetary policy itself does not become part of the problem by contributing to an inflationary spiral that would have severe consequences. I also emphasise that the majority of the cost-of-living measures introduced as part of the budget will continue to support households and firms over the coming months. For example, the two remaining electricity credits, which are worth €200 per household and which amount to €800 million in spending, will continue to be issued in the coming period, assisting households with their energy bills.

The temporary business energy support scheme, TBESS, which provides relief to businesses struggling with rising energy costs, will remain open for claims until the middle of this year. The €1.1 billion package of reductions in personal tax as well as increases in social welfare payments provided for in the budget took effect earlier this month and are permanent. In our response to the cost-of-living challenge, the Government has struck the right balance between providing necessary support without adding to inflationary pressures. Moreover, there is compelling evidence to suggest that inflation has peaked, while it is notable that energy prices, at the wholesale level at least, have fallen significantly from their highs last autumn. Hopefully, we will see those being transmitted to the end consumers. Any policy decisions must take into account these developments.

I understand the matter of the measurement of the response. Measurement of the success of some of the measures that have been introduced will of course take time. The TBESS, for instance, is only in its infancy and it will take time. The energy credit has had obvious beneficial effects on households up and down the country but as we move towards the latter end of the year, we will be at the end of autumn and into winter. We may then be in the same scenario we find ourselves in now. While I fully appreciate that the Minister is not going to announce Government policy or budgetary policy for 2024 on the floor of the House in January, the understanding that there is an acceptance that further measures may have to be taken will probably be sufficient for the public and that there are certain financial constraints that we as a Government will have to adhere to. However, that flexibility is built into the budget and that is one of the points I would like to get across.

I thank both Deputies for raising these issues and I want to take the opportunity to thank all our public servants who were involved in administering the exceptional payments issued between budget day and early December. Payments of the order of €1 billion outside of normal payments were made through our social protection system, including some universal payments such as child benefit and so on. I know from talking to people on the ground of the benefit that was derived from those particular payments. It was welcome and badly needed at that time. It is worth reiterating that many of the budget measures have only just kicked in in respect of permanent changes to income tax and social welfare, widening eligibility to the fuel allowance, significant reductions in childcare costs, which I know have been so warmly welcomed by many families, and we are continuing to administer the system of electricity credits as well.

That said, I acknowledge that inflation hurts people. Inflation affects people’s living standards and it makes the cost of doing business much higher. While we believe inflation has peaked in Ireland and it is coming back, it is still at in excess of 8%, which is a level the like of which we have not seen for approximately 40 years. Therefore, we will have to keep all of this under review. Saying that the rate of inflation is falling is not the same as saying that prices are falling.

At the end of the day, what matters to people is how much they are paying at the forecourt for their fuel, how much they are paying at the supermarket till for their groceries and how much they are paying for other essential day-to-day expenses. The Government understands that. Most people acknowledge that we have done a lot of work to help and address the challenges they are facing. I am not committing to any new specific measures here tonight except to say that we will be keeping it under active review, in particular, monitoring inflation and the real-world costs that people are facing in their day-to-day lives.