Holly Cairns
Question:177. Deputy Holly Cairns asked the Minister for Finance his views on introducing a windfall tax on energy companies provide support for households and SMEs experiencing substantial energy bill increases. [45130/22]
View answerWednesday, 14 September 2022
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There is an energy crisis currently, affecting not only Ireland but also all of Europe, arising from the war in Ukraine which has led to volatility in energy markets, and supply constraints in the electricity market. I am well aware of the difficulties Irish households and businesses are going through arising from substantial increases in energy bills.
Since the beginning of the year, this Government has taken action to ease the burden for energy users as much as possible. We introduced a package of new measures to mitigate the increase in the cost of living, including an electricity credit of €200, a lump sum payment of €125 on the fuel allowance, a temporary reduction in public transport fares, and a temporary reduction in VAT on gas and electricity from 13.5% to 9%.
However, further measures to ease the cost of living for households and businesses will form a central part of the forthcoming Budget.
In conjunction with the Department of the Environment, Climate and Communications, my Department has been assessing options for collecting a portion of the windfall profits that energy companies are currently making. This may be superseded by a new EU proposal for emergency interventions in the energy market. There is a benefit to coordinated action across the EU to effectively tackle high energy prices, and my officials are working to support officials in the Department of the Environment, Climate and Communications in examining the EU proposals.