I was contacted this week by the family of a 93-year-old woman who is living alone in a house which is extremely damp and necessitates keeping the heating on constantly. She applied to the better energy warmer homes scheme but she was refused because she had the attic in her house insulated about 20 years ago. This is a very good scheme which aims to improve the energy efficiency and warmth of homes for pensioners and those on lower incomes, and it is also beneficial for the environment. However, it should be on a needs basis and someone should not be refused based on the fact that they applied for a grant and got some work done years ago. If the house is damp and needs work now, that should be considered.

This is compounded by the fact that fuel costs have risen due to the increase in carbon tax, which is penalising people who have no alternative. There is also a waiting list of 7,300, which equates to about two and a half years of a waiting list, going by the current work rate. The Government announced millions in the budget towards retrofitting and that is welcome, but it is no good if the work is not being done on the ground. Can this be addressed so that work is done as a matter of urgency and that second applications are considered?

This is really a matter for the Minister for the Environment, Climate and Communications, Deputy Eamon Ryan, who administers that scheme through the Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland, SEAI. As is always the case with a grant scheme, there is a budget limit. There is no grant scheme that I am aware of where money is not limited. There has to be a limit on the budget and, therefore, there have to be some rules.

Those rules might be around a needs test or means test, or they might state that somebody who has already received a grant should not be given priority over somebody who has not yet received one. We need to be realistic about what is possible in that regard. I will take it up with the Minister.