2026-06-11

Léiríonn na figiúirí is déanaí ón CRU pictiúr thar a bheith gruama den bhrú atá ar theaghlaigh ar fud an Stáit. Don chéad uair riamh anois, tá níos mó ná 500,000 cuntas fuinnimh teaghlaigh i riaráistí. Níl na teaghlaigh a dhéanann iad féin a dhícheangal mar nach bhfuil siad ábalta íoc as méadar íoc-mar-a-úsáidtear san áireamh sna figiúirí sin. I gcás go leor seandaoine, iad siúd atá ina gcónaí leo féin agus teaghlaigh le páistí óga, bíonn iarmhairtí tubaisteacha acu maidir le sláinte, ar fholláine agus ar chaighdeán na beatha. Agus líon mór teaghlaigh ag streachailt chun íoc as bunriaráistí fuinnimh, tá méaduithe eile fógartha anois ag na comhlachtaí fuinnimh. Cad é go díreach atá an Rialtas chun a dhéanamh faoi seo? Cad é an freagra atá ag an Rialtas do na céadta míle teaghlaigh atá ag tabhairt aghaidh ar chostais fhuinnimh atá ag ardú agus an brú atá ar chúrsaí airgeadais? The latest figures from the energy regulator paint a deeply concerning picture of the pressures that are facing families across this State. For the first time ever there are over 500,000 families with energy accounts in arrears. These figures show there are more 319,000 families who cannot pay their electricity bills and 183,000 families who cannot pay their gas bills. These figures only tell part of the story. They do not include households who silently disconnect because they cannot afford to top up a pay-as-you-go meter. For those living alone and families with young children these choices have real consequences for health, well-being and quality of life. While record numbers of households are not able to pay for their basic energy needs we see energy companies have once again announced they are going to hike up energy costs. At at time when many families are already trying to keep pace with rising costs energy bills are set to rise again. Last week the biggest energy supplier in this State, Electric Ireland, announced sharp increases but there was not a peep out of those in Cabinet or Government. The Minister, Deputy Burke, points to economic growth and his Government points to record tax revenues and budget surpluses running into billions of euro. None of these things can reduce the bills that are landing on the kitchen tables each month and none of these things change the reality facing hundreds of thousands of families who are struggling with the cost of essential services. People are exhausted after years of rising costs. They have cut back where they can. They have adjusted their budgets and absorbed increase after increase but many feel there is no end in sight. The most frustrating thing is this is all happening at a time when there are unprecedented financial resources at the Government's disposal. The Minister's Government claims to understand the pressures people are under but the regulator's figures tell a very different story. They show financial pressures remain severe for many households despite repeated assurances that conditions are improving. For the first time ever there are more than 500,000 households across this State in energy arrears and families are facing prices going up yet again. The Government still has an opportunity to act before the latest price increases take effect. Timely action now, including energy credits, would ease the pressure on workers, families and pensioners who are already struggling to keep up. Will the Government act now? Will it listen? Will it provide energy credits as an immediate solution for people who are really struggling? What is the Government's answer to the hundreds of thousands of families who are facing mounting energy costs and financial strain?

I thank Deputy Doherty for his question on an area which is very close to the concern of the Government, which is energy affordability in our country and the ability of households to pay. Something the Government keeps a very close track of is those who are in arrears for 90 days. It is a critical component that shows stress over a period of time. I want to outline what the Government is doing to really reduce costs at the kitchen table, as the Deputy put it. First of all, we came forward with a record level in an EU context per capita of intervention to support families across the country. We are supporting families with the cost of fuel, which is very significant for those who are commuting to work, families who are working and families who are trying to heat their homes, by reducing excise duties across all components with a €16 reduction in petrol per fill and a €19 reduction in diesel. Also, looking at the logistics and how food is produced to reduce the cost of groceries on the shelves for consumers, we have done a huge package for agriculture in terms of production and in haulage, with a 60% increase in the diesel rebate scheme, again underwriting the cost to the housewife, the homemaker and the person in the home to ensure they get that key support. There are a few areas I also want to comment on in relation to how we get energy independence and reduce the cost to the family. At this point we have 258,000 homes that have been through energy improvements. We have fully-funded 32,700 under the warmer homes scheme. That is 32,700 families across the country who have had that support. We have brought forward 18,000 heat pumps, again to support people - and using money raised by the State. We have about €558 million of the €640 million through those schemes through the SEA to target the most vulnerable in society. I note when Deputy Doherty brought forward his party's proposals earlier this year in a motion he left out the fuel allowance, meaning no recompense to support the most vulnerable people in a targeted way, which is key and absolutely needed. The Government's position is very clear. We stood up the national affordability task force to look at affordability right across the economy to the household and particularly to the most vulnerable. That report will be published in advance of consideration for the budget. We will be looking, through that report, at energy prices in the first instance and second at addressing energy poverty and consumer protections - which are very important - as well as energy affordability. I ask people who are struggling to first of all engage with their supplier. The Minister, Deputy O'Brien, has been very clear in meeting all the energy companies and working with them to ensure people are not cut off, people who engage with them, and to support people. We will obviously be coming forward as a Government, collectively, with other measures in the context of the next budget. As Deputies have seen in previous budgets, we were agile. We reacted before the calendar turned and supported families right across the economy and supported the most vulnerable, which is key, through our targeted measures in the current budget, which are still being utilised and are supporting families as we speak. It is key we ensure we continue to support families. We will be doing that through evidence-based initiatives, through our national affordability task force and through supporting customers who are in arrears. I would also say to people who are in trouble that they should reach out to our Department of Social Protection, which has a range of supports, including the additional needs payment, and works with families to ensure no one gets cut off. The fuel allowance has increased significantly to €152 per month to support families in a targeted measure. There are now about 460,000 homes right across the economy, which are being supported by it. We extended it this year to people on the working families payment, thereby bringing 50,000 more families into that support and linking it to work as well, to support people who are working right across the economy.

The Minister and his Government withdrew energy credits in last year's budget. That is why we are seeing what is happening now. We have record numbers of families across this State who cannot pay their electricity or gas bills. That is on the Government. We are paying the highest electricity costs in Europe and the electricity companies have just told us they are going to jack up prices again. In less than three weeks 1.2 million families across the State are going to face near double-digit increases in electricity and gas prices? What is the Minister's response? It is that we should wait to see what the Government does in next year's budget. That is not good enough. The Government needs to call in the energy companies and it needs to tell them that increase after increase is simply not on. The Government also needs to make direct intervention. It needs to bring forward energy credits right now. It has to understand the scale of the problem. There are people coming to me who never had a problem paying their electricity bill or gas bill, but because of the relentless price increases they now cannot pay their bills.

I thank Deputy Doherty.

The penny needs to drop. Half a million households is massive. I am asking this very clearly. Will the Government act now, before these increases take effect in three weeks' time, and bring forward energy credits?

I thank Deputy Doherty. I call on the Minister to respond.

Will the Government rein in the companies here and tell them we cannot face these energy increases time after time, while they make multimillion profits?

Hear, hear.

We are acting right now at a record level in the economy, supporting people at the fuel pumps and through reductions in electricity VAT rates. We are supporting people right across the economy to ensure they are not cut off. The Minister, Deputy Darragh O'Brien, has met with all the energy companies and given the Government an assurance that anyone who works with energy companies in relation to their bill will be supported. The Deputy has brought forward a number of measures he said he costed at €100 million a month, to be brought forward at the start of this energy crisis. The Government is doing much more than that. Sinn Féin says the Government is doing nothing this side of the Border, but on the other side of the Border Sinn Féin is doing nothing. We are acting at a record level to support families. We will continue to do that through the national affordability task force, which is looking at energy affordability, protecting consumers and energy policy.

The task force will not pay their bills.

We have always acted in the past and we will continue to do so to protect the most vulnerable in society.

Does the Minister actually care?

Yesterday, the Taoiseach laid out Ireland's priorities for the EU Presidency. He said: "Active support for Ukraine will be a defining priority for the Irish presidency." On Tuesday night, missiles rained down on the Kharkiv region bringing destruction, injury and death to the civilian population. One of those who lost their life was a 22-year-old pregnant woman. A one-year-old child was among those seriously injured. This is the brutality caused by drones and missiles that land on Ukrainian homes on a daily basis. An investigation carried out by The Irish Times and the Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project found that vast amounts of alumina are being shipped from Ireland to Russia. On arrival, it is being sold to a company that supplies dozens of Russian arms manufacturers. This flies in the face of Irish people's support for Ukraine. Alumina exports to Russia have increased from €196 million in 2021 to €318 million last year. According to a report by Swedish tax investigators, the Russian oligarch, Oleg Deripaska, retains a controlling share of the company that has a majority ownership of Aughinish Alumina. Deripaska is a close ally and supporter of Putin. He has contributed substantially to Putin's brutal invasion of Ukraine. The Government's head-in-the-sand approach is in sharp contrast to the decisive action taken by Australia. It banned the export of alumina to Russia as soon as it invaded Ukraine. At the time, Australia supplied 20% of Russia's alumina, but it still acted with urgency. It did this because alumina played a critical role in Russia's war machine, as its then Prime Minister, Scott Morrison, said. The Australians did not want to play any part whatsoever in feeding Putin's murderous war. Instead, they said they would work with companies and exporters impacted by the ban to find new markets and expand existing ones. After Australia cut off its supply, the Russians had to look elsewhere to find replacements, including Aughinish Alumina, where exports to Russia have soared. The Minister claims he has no idea about the end use of the alumina exported from Ireland, but it is clear from independent investigations that it is being used by Russian arms manufacturers. These arms are then being used to kill Ukrainian men, women and children. Will the Government stop the export of alumina to Russia? When will the Department's investigation be completed? Will it be published? Have we asked the Ukrainian Government for samples from drones and missiles to forensically analyse against samples from Aughinish?

I thank Deputy Cian O'Callaghan for his very important question. I fully share the concern he has raised. That is why we have set about conducting an investigation in the Department of enterprise to impartially ascertain the evidence, working with the European Commission and the Swedish authorities, which came forward with additional evidence in the past ten days. We are also working with Aughinish Alumina to try to ascertain the truth. We will get to the bottom of the supply chain. We will need assurances that it is a concealed supply chain. Ireland has supported every sanctions package in a European context against Russia, which is the aggressor in this case. That is a total of 21 packages we have fully supported. We have been very much to the fore as a country in supporting Ukraine, be it with the very significant €90 billion support loan we were part of underwriting in a European context, supporting Ukraine with non-lethal aid, giving it spare parts for its grid, welcoming so many Ukrainians here to Ireland and also providing more than 14,000 school places to support them at that very difficult time in their history. That is why I am very clear in the first instance that we must have a robust investigation here. We are working very closely with the European Commission. Aughinish Alumina was established in Ireland around 1986. It is the largest supplier of alumina in Europe. There are a few important facts to set out in the first instance to understand the trajectory. First, alumina is a critical raw material. It is relied upon for so many parts by every economy, including Europe, for medical devices, the automotive industry, electric vehicles and the food sector.

Will the Minister answer my questions?

I will. I said that we are carrying out an investigation to get the evidence. As a Minister, I cannot make a decision without impartial evidence before me. We are working with the European Commission, which is the competent authority in this regard, to essentially recommend sanctions to the Department of enterprise and the Government. We are the enforcement authority. We carry out the execution of the sanction but the policy piece is the remit of the Commission, which we feed into. We will be working to ascertain the truth here. We are taking a pan-European approach with other European authorities, which is critical. I will be very clear that the Irish Government would not tolerate any exports that were feeding the Russian military complex. We have supported Ukraine. We have a very strong track record of doing that. I have put an independent process in place to ensure that we get to the bottom of the facts of exactly where this alumina is ending up. We have to achieve that through the investigation. In a European context, alumina is not a dual-use product and has not been designated as such. There are many products like that across the economy. We have to be clear. We must get the evidence and then take action if it is proven that the supply chain is not concealed and that it is going to aid and assist the Russian military complex.

The facts on this have been established. Since the war began our exports to Russia have soared. That is one fact. The second fact is these exports come from a company where the majority ownership behind it is a Russian oligarch who is a close ally and supporter of Putin. The third fact that has been established by an independent investigation is that when these exports go to Russia they are being used to produce aluminium that is then being sold to Russian arms manufacturers. The fourth fact is those Russian arms manufacturers are supplying Putin's invasion of Ukraine and the missiles, drones and weapons are being used to kill Ukrainian people. The facts are staring the Minister in the face. The Australians knew the facts more than four years ago. They acted decisively. Why is the Government hiding behind its claim that it needs to ascertain the truth and establish what is going on here when it has been established already? When is the Government going to act decisively on this? When is it going to stop these exports? Will the Minister answer my questions? Has the Government asked the Ukrainian Government for samples of drones and missiles so it can forensically examine them to establish the links with the exports from Ireland?

Yes, we have spoken to the Ukrainian Government and we have asked it for the evidence it possesses regarding the allegation that is before us. It is currently engaging with the Department in relation to that. That is why I said our investigation is very wide-ranging. It is a genuine investigation to get the evidence. I am working with the Swedish authorities on evidence that has come forward as well. We need to go through the process to prove the allegation the Deputy puts forward. I put on the record to be helpful that incorrect data was given to the Central Statistics Office about the exports of alumina to the EU and to Russia. About 45% of it goes to Russia and about 55% goes to the EU. I have to stress test the notes that are given to me. The independent investigation will do that. A large proportion of the alumina is imported back into the European Union from smelters in Russia. We have to assess all that and ensure that the information we have is correct. I have put on the record very clearly, as a proud European, that we stand by Ukraine. We will not tolerate, in any shape or form, if exports from Ireland are advancing the cause of the Russian aggression in Ukraine and damaging their citizens.

The greed of Rotunda Hospital consultants on public-only contracts trying to get a way with still treating private patients in public hospitals has been front-page news all week. The Minister for Health has said she believes "in equality for every baby being born". The idea that some mothers and babies should get better care because of having more money is absolutely abhorrent but the question is: should that equality for babies stop the moment that they leave the maternity hospital? There is an unpublished report by EY into Children's Health Ireland, CHI, which shows that is exactly what is happening. It shows that children whose parents cannot afford health insurance, that is, approximately half of all children in this country, are being forced to wait much, much longer for essential surgery. Hospital consultants are prioritising private patients over those on public lists. It shows that children who need urology surgery are waiting up to a year longer if they do not have private health insurance. Kids who need time-sensitive spinal surgery are waiting more than six months longer because their little bodies are less profitable to operate on. I will give the Minister some examples from the report. Urology consultant 2 in this sample has 20 public child patients. The average waiting time for surgery in public is 12.4 months. For ten private patients the average waiting time is 1.84 months. For consultant 5, in orthopaedics, the average waiting time in public is 8.7 months while the average waiting time in private is two months. That is pretty much across the board in terms of a massive discrepancy of waiting time in public versus waiting time for private. Everyone pretends that discrimination between private and public patients has no impact on safety or patient care but the review shows that to be untrue. Let me quote from it: "For Spinal patients, only 41% (9 out of 22) were treated within the Clinical Recommended Timeframes ... meaning 59% faced delays, sometimes for several months. Delays happened for both urgent and less urgent cases ... with a median delay of 143 days". We all remember poor Harvey Morrison Sherratt suffering in agony on a waiting list. In urology, "Of the 73 patients reviewed ... (41%) were treated outside the Clinical Recommended Timeframes ... The median delay was 152 days". There was one case where a child waited seven years for routine surgery. The report points out that children may wait longer than clinically recommended for assessment, investigation or treatment, with potential consequences for clinical outcomes, disease progression and quality of life. So much for cherishing all the children of the nation equally. Does the Minister agree that this is utterly horrendous and that all children should get equal access to healthcare? Does he agree that this report needs to be published immediately? Does he agree that just as private healthcare has no place in the Rotunda, it should have no place in Children's Health Ireland either?

I thank Deputy Murphy for his question. I am a firm believer in Sláintecare. It is one time when the Oireachtas came together and charted how health policy evolves irrespective of the change of Governments that we have within the country. First of all, the Deputy is quoting from a leaked report, which I have not seen and have no knowledge of. The Minister for Health, Deputy Carroll MacNeill, commissioned a report - ordered the HSE to do so - into Children's Health Ireland because of significant concerns that she had. I would acknowledge the exceptional work the Minister has carried out over the past two weeks to protect the integrity of the State and to ensure patients get equality of care right across our economy. The great work that has been carried out with the public-only consultant contract should be pointed out. As of the end of May 2026, 3,416 consultants have signed up to the public-only consultant contract. Out of 2,196 consultants, that represents almost 70% of all consultants working in Ireland. As a result of that, we have to ensure that work is public only. The Minister is committed to doing that, in line with the terms as set out by Sláintecare which is very important. One of the critical things we can do with the public-only consultant contract is that, clinically, we can manage consultant availability with public demand. That will be very important as we see the challenges our health service faces in the years ahead. It should be pointed out also that huge advances have taken place in a lot of hospitals across the country because of these changes. For example, in the Mater hospital, an additional 180 CT scans monthly and 84 MRI scans have taken place because of the public-only consultant contract. We see in other hospitals that many of the theatres are now operating at weekends. We get additional days out of consultants and, critically, the key decision-makers are in the room when patients have to be triaged and clinical decisions have to be made. Those senior consultants who are employed by the State on a public-only contract are available to make those decisions in support of patients, which is critical. Sláintecare has had its challenges but the Government is very committed to deliver it. It has never been so committed as under the Minister, Deputy Carroll MacNeill. The Minister has demonstrated that with the increase in budget the Health Service Executive has received over the past number of years, which now is at record levels, with the support we have in preventative medicine, which is key, and with the support for our children. No one wants to stand over any child in this State having to wait for urgent healthcare. That is not acceptable in any society and I say that as a father, understanding the needs and the genuine concerns families have right across our society.

The Minister's commitment to public healthcare is somewhat undermined by the fact that private suites are being built in the new national children's hospital right now - more inequality literally being built into the system even though private care in public hospitals is meant to be expiring. I will ask again whether the Minister agrees that this report needs to be published. People have the right to see these figures which show the reality of the horrific effect of having private for-profit healthcare happening within our health system. What it means is worse health outcomes, longer times on waiting lists - sometimes in agony - and having poor outcomes at the end of it for kids whose parents do not have the money to have private healthcare. Is that okay? Is it okay that if you have private healthcare, you get to wait a lot less than if you have public healthcare? These are children. These are children who do not even make the choice about whether they have private healthcare or not. Does the Minister agree that all children need to be treated equally, regardless of their health insurance status? Does he agree the report needs to be published? Does he agree that it is time to wipe private healthcare out of CHI and the whole public hospital system?

First of all, I reiterate I have not seen the report. I do not know when it will be completed. I do not know what version the Deputy has that has been leaked. I do not know whether the Minister has received it yet. The Minister for Health commissioned this report and asked for an investigation into the practices at CHI to ensure there was equity of treatment of patients. The Minister asked for this and the Deputy is quoting the results of it. I do not know whether the Minister has seen that report and what actions she will take on foot of it but I am confident she will take action. The Minister demonstrated that quite clearly over the past number of days when she assured the protection of the public-only consultant contract. The Minister has got results. That is why I am clear in my view. The Government is very committed to Sláintecare and, critically, that all children are treated equally in our society. That is espoused in the Proclamation. It is something that we have strongly in our hearts as Irish people. We are doing everything we can to ensure there is equality of treatment for all our children.

The matter that has caused great distress in communities and volunteer organisations across this country is a sudden collapse of tickets.ie. Last week, organisers who logged in to draw down moneys owed to them, moneys that had already been paid by ordinary people buying tickets in good faith, were met instead with a webpage telling them that the company, Tickets.ie, and Oshi Software Limited had ceased trading and were heading into liquidation. There was no warning and no telephone call, only a webpage telling them that the company had gone. Some organisers in communication with the company the previous day were told their moneys were secure, there was no problem and it was business as usual when discussing ticket sales. For more than 20 years, Tickets.ie was one of the State's largest independent ticketing platforms. It was not the choice of the multinational or stadium promoters. It was the choice of the parish festivals, the local arts groups, the community sports clubs and the volunteer community organisations running music festivals to put their town on the map. They are precisely the events that rural and small towns in Ireland need but it is those groups that are now left out of pocket. The sums are not small. Between three festivals, namely, the Rory Gallagher International Festival, Rockathon and the Cowboys and Heroes festival in Ballinamore, organisers have reported collectively being owed in the region of €580,000. One festival alone faces losses of up to €135,000. For a volunteer committee, that is not just a setback; it is ruinous. It is the difference between that festival being run again next summer and having to wrap it up and finish for good. When a licensed travel agent collapses, customers' moneys are protected because it was decided long ago in this House that businesses holding public moneys would be subject to safeguards in respect of those moneys. It should trouble every Member of this House that ticketing agencies in this State that may hold hundreds of thousands of euro belonging to promoters and ticket buyers can collapse overnight with no equivalent protections, that is, no ring fencing, no bond and no money supplied. The moneys will simply vanish into liquidation. That is a gap in the law of the State and it must be closed. Will the Minister for enterprise intervene on behalf of the organisations caught in this collapse and will he and the Minister for culture provide and mobilise emergency funding? Second, will the Government commit to regulating the primary ticket sales agents to protect and ring-fence money paid by and being held on behalf of those organisations? We cannot go back but we can ensure that no more people involved in parish councils and community organisations find themselves looking at a webpage and wondering where their money has gone.

I thank the Deputy for raising this important issue. I am aware of the many community groups up and down the country that give so much to organising festivals that benefit the wider community and attract significant numbers of visitors to rural areas. A number of Members put queries to me on this issue during the week. The Minister of State, Deputy Feighan, has been doing a lot of work with a number of festivals in his area. Deputy O'Flynn has outlined how much out of pocket some of the festivals are and the exposure faced by community groups. I understand there is an intervention in the High Court in relation to this issue. Therefore, I must be careful in what I say. The first point I will make is that protections are very clearly set out for a lot of areas where client money is held. This particular area does concern me. As the Deputy rightly pointed out, there may be a gap in the regulatory environment. We will look at that because we want to ensure maximum protections are afforded to client moneys being held by any organisation. In the context of a liquidation process, the rules are very clear in terms of the action a liquidator will take in regard to preferential creditors and how that process is worked through. As I said, a court action is going on in the background. I have asked my Department to investigate what we can do and what supports we can provide in this regard. However, I do not want to make false promises. We have committed a very significant budget over the next three years for festival events through Fáilte Ireland, which is supporting many festivals up and down the country. That will bring a huge amount of economic activity to many rural parts of our country. I absolutely am not in any way unsympathetic to the issues the Deputy has raised. I work with community groups. I am at the coalface in a rural town where exactly that activity is happening. I know how much of their time volunteers give to run festivals, particularly ones like the Rory Gallagher International Festival in Ballyshannon, Cowboys and Heroes in County Leitrim and Rockathon at Fairyhouse, that have a very significant reputation. They are all important events that contribute very substantially to their localities. I will revert to the Deputy in the first instance in terms of regulatory gaps that may exist in relation to clients' funds. I need to go through that properly in the Department to see exactly what we can do in terms of supports. The Corporate Enforcement Authority is there. If there are any allegations, we can investigate them. However, I must be careful in terms of the High Court case that is currently under way.

The reality is that the Minister will have to come up with something in respect of these groups. Many of the festivals will not survive. Some have gone ahead or will go ahead but they are carrying huge deficits. They will go into liquidation. Some are limited companies, some are parish councils and some are community organisations. We will have a serious deficit if the Government does not invest in our festivals and does not come up with emergency funding or an emergency package. I have written to the Minister and a number of his ministerial colleagues. I ask him to intervene on the issue. It is about keeping our festivals not just this year but for next year and the years after it. There is no coming back from the blow experienced by many of these festivals. They are run by volunteer groups that have no other source of income. The Minister mentioned a gap in legislation and regulation on this issue. In fact, it is a gaping hole. No other industry is operating in this type of cowboy country situation. If we look at a solicitor's fund or any client fund, we see it is well organised and well protected. Regulation must be brought to the House as quickly as possible to ensure the same is in place in this area.

I will revert to the House on this matter. This year, we are under significant pressure in terms of our budgetary perspective. However, we may be able, over the coming years, to look at what is needed to keep running these established festivals and how we can support them. I can commit to having a look at that in the next couple of years to see what my Department can do, together with the Minister, Deputy O'Donovan, who has a lot of responsibility in this area. I appreciate that many genuinely voluntary organisations are working so hard and driving so much economic activity at the heart of their communities. Those involved are exactly the types of people the Government wants to support.