Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 20 September 2022
126. Deputy Fergus O'Dowd asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment his views on genuine concerns raised by a local business (details supplied) in respect of the worsening energy crisis that is debilitating businesses across Ireland; his plans to support businesses in the future; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [45498/22]
View answerI would like to thank the Deputy for raising the genuine concerns from a local business which highlights the rising energy costs that they face.
Government is acutely aware of the difficulties businesses have faced over the past number of years with the necessary COVID-19 restrictions and now in recent times with the increased cost of living and in particular energy costs.
While the Government has already implemented some measures to help ease the impact on enterprises of rising energy costs, we will be doing more. We are looking at a mix of broad based measures which will help all business and at targeted interventions for those most impacted. This approach has been central to our budget discussions and new measures will be announced on Budget Day, Tuesday 27th September.
Budget 2023 will be about putting money back in people’s pockets and that will include further measures to help households and businesses with their energy costs. The Government will keep the energy situation under close and active review, and we will continue to examine what measures are possible to manage the impact of rising energy prices for households and businesses.
What makes this situation challenging to respond to is the fact that it is being driven by international factors – outside of Ireland’s control.
My Department is also working with the European Commission to allow us to grant state aid to certain businesses to help them with additional costs (both liquidity and energy costs) due to the Russian war on Ukraine. This is under the Ukraine Temporary Crisis Framework introduced by the European Commission. While some of these interventions will be targeted at those firms that trade internationally or are impacted by global trade, a more broad based loan scheme will also be open to most business.
We will also be looking to raise awareness around energy efficiency, helping businesses reduce the amount of energy they use in the first place and improving take-up of the approximately 20 different schemes we already have in place for business.
For example, in June we announced a new €55 million ‘Green Transition’ fund to help businesses move away from fossil fuels and towards more sustainable, cheaper alternatives. This includes the Enterprise Emissions Reduction Investment Fund, which provides Enterprise Ireland, Údarás na Gaeltachta and IDA Ireland manufacturing clients grants of up to €1m to improve their energy efficiency and decarbonise their processes.
The Government has not been found wanting when it has come to helping businesses get through difficult periods, including those in the manufacturing sector. The multi-billion euro financial assistance provided by Government during the pandemic was unprecedented, whether it was help with businesses’ wage bill so they could keep staff on, their overheads, the introduction of a cheaper, easier way to restructure and survive than examinership; the commercial rates waiver, or the reduction in VAT for the hospitality sector.
