As I said to Deputy McDonald earlier, the Government is aware of the issues with regard to rising fuel prices and acknowledges the enormous impact these increases in energy prices are having on people in terms of going to work, heating their homes and so on. The matter is under active consideration by the Government.

It is a bit late.

The Government will respond. To respond to Deputy Mattie McGrath, we are certainly not sleepwalking into this. This war is 13 days old. It is having, and will continue to have-----

What is 13 days old? This has been going on for years.

If the Government listened to us, this would be sorted, but it is asleep.

Will the Deputies let the Taoiseach answer the question?

What he is saying is not accurate. The Government does not want to know about any crisis. The only thing that is going up is carbon tax.

The Taoiseach is running out of time now.

The Government responded to the cycle of inflation induced by the pandemic with a budget package of €500 million. The war is going to mean a lot more inflation. It will mean that life will not be quite the same as we thought it would be, at least for 2022. That is all I am saying.

The Taoiseach keeps saying that.

The Government will respond to this.

To respond to Deputy Barry's comments, this is an informal meeting of the European Council hosted by the French Presidency. Conclusions will not be drawn from it. I would not be as conspiratorial as the Deputy about it. On the one hand, it will deal with a number of issues pertaining to the strategic compass. On the following day, the economic repercussions of the war and of the Covid pandemic and the economic future of Europe will be discussed. It will be a general discussion and more exploratory with regard to its breadth. On Thursday, I anticipate discussions on the security crisis arising from the war in Ukraine. We expect to be briefed on the war in Ukraine and where matters lie in that regard.

On Deputy Berry's point, that is fundamentally a matter for the Oireachtas. The Government will co-operate with and be of assistance to the Oireachtas in facilitating President Zelenskyy addressing the Dáil or a joint sitting of the Oireachtas. I would have no issue with that, subject to facilitating President Zelenskyy because every presentation of this kind he undertakes carries security risks from his perspective and that of Ukraine. We will do whatever we can to be of assistance. We are well aware of what Ukraine wants and what it is seeking from the European Union. We have provided our full per capita contribution to the European peace facility. We have also provided humanitarian aid and have agreed with the European Union in respect of visas and so on.