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them. The Government now speaks about disruption but this was entirely foreseeable. We saw this level of disconnect at the time of the fuel protests, which was the time the Government did not engage or listen to people, and particularly businesses which are finding it so difficult … mark and setting up businesses but we need more supports for those people. What happened yesterday and certainly what happened during the fuel protests should have been anticipated and foreseeable but it was not, unfortunately. The Government's priorities and its focus need to change urgently. It needs

Like the fuel protests

Government has repeatedly given in to the demands of narrow sectoral interests and lobbyists through the last two Budgets, and in response to fuel protests; and — Budget 2026 failed to index PAYE tax rates, bands and credits, and the changes this year still leave workers cumulatively behind; further

passed without beeping to show its support. I urge the Minister not to make the same mistake the Government made with the fuel protests when it tried to conquer and split the crowd and called them all sorts of names. That is what he is doing here

MacNeill, has blocked the promised scoliosis public investigation and has devastated families. The Minister, Deputy O'Donovan, threatened RTÉ funding because of its fuel protests reporting and then proceeded to pull funding. The national children's hospital still has no opening date and the costs keep racking

else through polite budget submissions. It never did and it never will. It is power that yields results. We saw this with the fuel protest, which helped a certain number of people around one issue but it did not help the whole of society. We need the trade

biggest issue in this country for the past six months has been the price of energy and fuel. The streets have been filled with tens of thousands of people protesting the excruciating cost of energy. Public meetings have been jammed with thousands of people in hotel rooms across

come out. These are ordinary, hard-working people who never protested before and the Government drove them out onto the streets and it may well do it again. It is cynicism. The Minister has cut the fuel allowance in real terms because he has cut the period

country that are currently in arrears with their electricity bills. Families feel they are being assaulted by the Government due to sky-high fuel prices. Are their lives today any different from their lives yesterday because of this budget? Is the price of petrol, diesel or agricultural diesel … Ireland at the moment. I cannot understand how the Government is not getting this. Did it not see the country convulsed by protests for the last seven months? Did it not see the ports, the oil refineries and the streets that were blocked? Why has this

made and we ended up with protests. What happened? The Government blamed the protesters and everybody but itself. The reason it blamed the protesters was that it refused to take responsibility for the fact that the Minister and the Government did not do enough to support people during … about a cost-of-living crisis, it is rents, mortgages, groceries, insurance and across the board, but it is also the cost of fuel - petrol, diesel, home heating oil and all of the other fuels. All the Minister is doing in this financial resolution is extend the temporary

tomorrow morning and go to the shop or go to work. They have to use the car and spend the money on the fuel, but the Government is not willing to help them. The hauliers are on their knees. We know that. Our TDs and councillors were down … where I was last Saturday. I was in Bantry last Saturday, where there was a 60-year anniversary celebration of the farmers who protested, and left Bantry in their oilskins, tartan trousers and broken boots and marched to Dublin. Fianna Fáil left them 20 days and nights outside

refused to listen to the people in relation to carbon tax. The Government said that the objective of carbon tax is to push fuel up to a price so people move over to alternatives, but what happens if they cannot afford an alternative? What happens if they cannot … this country because their money and income are evaporating. Now, 300,000 public servants will find that they have no alternative but to protest. The thing about it is that the Government showed a shocking arrogance to the protestors back in April in refusing to negotiate with them

working now in this country. That gap continues to widen. It is little wonder we are having strikes and protests. I will support the workers in their claim. Any percentage increase needs to be highest for those on middle and low incomes in the public sector … energy, while we have to transition and there are SEAI grants available, if you are on the lowest income and on the fuel allowance, it is free but there is a two-year waiting list for that. For the grant assistance for other upgrades, people need to have

they are going to be €12 worse off. Now, that is some brass neck from the Government on this. It has shortened the fuel allowance season by four weeks and then pretended it is actually bailing out people by increasing the amount by €5. They are worse … that this has been a burning issue for people, forcing the Government into action only when people had to rise up and protest because the Government refused to understand and refused to listen to the pressure ordinary people were under. Many forecourts are now charging

kerosene was at 95 cent, one would think that the need for carbon tax was then gone to discourage people from using fuels such as green diesel, white diesel and kerosene. The Government is persisting with it notwithstanding the way it has increased. Let us consider white diesel … ensure that something is done for these people. Mention was made of the age profile of people who were in the protest. I can visualise yet the 86-year-old woman in Killarney, on the bypass, who was out with her flag protesting at what was happening

even introduce a €500 electricity energy credit and certainly refused to introduce any measures to get us away from reliance on fossil fuels. People will be worse off next year as a result of this budget because, as has been outlined, even in the best-case scenario workers … those measures the Government cut was something called the disability support grant, which was €400. It told us last year, when we were protesting as part of the Affordable Ireland campaign led by disabled people, not to worry because it was going to do all this work over

house. They are repaying the mortgage and an average mortgage now is between €400,000 and €500,000. The Government taxes people in fuel taxes while they are going to work. It taxes people coming home from work, while they are at work and now it will … secure Government TDs' jobs for the rest of their lives. What those in this country who do not vote, whether as a protest or otherwise, are doing is putting hardship on everyone in this country by allowing these Deputies to be elected. The mood is changing