De réir mar a mhéadaíonn praghsanna fuinnimh mar gheall ar an gcogadh, fuair an Economic and Social Research Institute, ESRI, amach go bhfuil duine as achan trí teaghlaigh anois ag maireachtáil i mbochtaineacht fuinnimh agus diúltaíonn an Rialtas seo gníomhú. Tá níos mó daoine ag titim isteach i mbochtaineacht fuinnimh agus iad ag streachailt leis an ngéarchéim chostais maireachtála agus tá seo do-ghlactha. D'iarr Sinn Féin arís agus arís ar an Rialtas seo cáinaisnéis éigeandála a thabhairt chun tosaigh, a thabharfadh faoiseamh do na teaghlaigh agus do na hoibrí seo atá ag streachailt. Tá saoránaigh ar fud na tíre seo ag iarraidh Rialtas a thacaíonn leo agus a chuireann in ord tosaíochta iad ach tá Rialtas againn atá ag fágáil ar leataobh iad.

As the Tánaiste hosted a private dinner last night to celebrate Fine Gael's decade in power, the ESRI was finalising its report on energy poverty in this State as prices increase at the fastest rate in 40 years. Today's report found the average household is now spending €2,000 more on fuel and energy, and this could increase by another €1,500. Prices are through the roof and people are struggling. One in three households now lives in energy poverty and this could rise to a staggering 43%, as the ESRI said this morning. The report states, "As fuel bills go up, it is people and families on lower incomes that suffer the most." It goes on to say, "In rapidly increasing numbers, households are facing the choice between putting food on the table, buying back-to-school clothes or heating their home."

Today's report paints a picture that is undeniable. Households who were already at the edge are now being plunged into energy poverty. This is the Ireland of today, with people, including working families, skipping meals or queueing for food parcels, something they never thought they would have to do. They are having to do it because the State is not supporting them but letting them fall through the cracks, and those cracks are getting wider. While Fine Gael toasted its success in government last night, the reality is many families are being pushed to the brink. The last thing they are thinking about is raising a glass to Fine Gael's success because they are worried about how to get to the end of the week, pay the bills at the end of the month or put food on the table for their children.

Facing these pressures, these families are confronted by a Government which refuses to take further action now. The Government has repeatedly ruled out measures to support households until October at the earliest, despite Sinn Féin calling on it week after week to take such measures. That is not sustainable, nor is it acceptable for those tens of thousands of families pushed to the brink. The Government is allowing struggling households to wither on the vine and its message to them amounts to "Buckle up because you're on your own". Government has a moral duty to support those who are struggling and protect the most vulnerable, but those who need it most have been left behind. This Government has refused to act.

I plead with the Tánaiste to change course and bring forward an emergency budget with the measures Sinn Féin has proposed, including cost-of-living cash payments to lower and middle-income households and a social welfare package that protects the most vulnerable from the cost-of-living crisis. Will the Tánaiste change course? Will the penny finally drop? Will he wake up, take action and understand that people cannot wait a further four months for him to bring forward a budget, and then whatever time after for him to implement it?

I thank the Deputy. That was a cheap shot. I hosted a dinner last night to thank colleagues for their years of service. There was no public money involved. Sinn Féin hosts dinners in America, charging people €1,000 per plate to attend, and the party leader flies first class to get there. That is what Sinn Féin does in the middle of a cost-of-living crisis. I believe she is about to announce another first-class trip to Australia, which she will undertake in the coming weeks. She will be clinking champagne glasses with the Trinity alumni in Australia and meeting the Australian business association. That is a cheap shot, particularly coming from a hypocritical party like the Deputy's, which receives millions in donations from vagabonds who live in a caravan-----

Anything to avoid the question. Your housing crisis, your health crisis, your childcare crisis.

The Tánaiste, without interruption, please.

-----and that is one of the biggest landlords in the State, owning 50 properties-----

Anything to avoid the question, a Cheann Comhairle. I am being provoked again.

-----and from a person who operates his constituency office using public money from some sort of republican company. Cheap shots from Deputy Doherty should be seen for what they are by the Irish people.

Like they see the housing disaster.

I want to deal with the issue, having responded to the cheap shot. The ESRI report is stark. I do not think it is surprising to anyone in this House. We all know the extent to which petrol and diesel prices have soared in the past year. You only have to fill your tank or go into the forecourt to see that.

Taxation.

We all know the extent to which the cost of electricity and gas has gone up. You only have to look at your utility bill to know that. People are feeling the squeeze. Some families are really struggling and having to make very difficult decisions about what they spend their money on because of the increase in the cost of living. These are largely driven by international factors, including the mismatch between global supply and demand and, in particular, Putin's war in Ukraine. If Deputies go to Northern Ireland, Britain, France, Spain or Germany, they will see they are experiencing the same problems we are because this is an international problem.

Government can help and is helping. In January we introduced €1 billion of budget measures, including an increase in the minimum wage, increases in welfare and pension and reductions in income tax for middle-income earners, which Deputy Doherty opposed. The average couple, both on the average income, would be paying €800 more in income tax this year if the Deputy was finance Minister, and that is a fact. Since then, we have introduced another €1.4 billion in additional measures. We have taken 20 cent of the cost of petrol and 15 cent off the cost of diesel. We are as low as we are allowed to go under European law when it comes to taxes on diesel.

That is not true

We cannot go any lower. I have confirmation on that in relation to diesel from the Minister for Finance today. We have reduced VAT on electricity and gas to 9%, which is the lowest it has ever been. We have taken €200 off people's electricity bills and introduced a targeted measure giving people on fuel allowance an additional €100. That is what has been done so far.

We accept we need to take further action to help people with the cost of living and are working on such action. The budget is three and a bit months away. We are working towards that, looking at the options and seeing what we might be able to introduce more quickly. Rather than waiting until January, February or March, we are seeing what we can do in October, November and December to help people before Christmas in relation to the cost of living. I do not rule out additional measures between now and then. We will continue to monitor the situation and see if prices moderate or continue to rise. I do not rule out interim measures but, as things stand, we have none planned and are working towards a budget package in a few months' time that will be in place for the winter and help people with rising costs.

The Tánaiste's opening gambit again displays how out of touch the Government is. I really thought as somebody whom the Director of Public Prosecutions is assessing whether to prosecute him under the corruption Act, he would be a bit more humble in his response.

Deputy Doherty, without interruption, please.

Let me put this to the Tánaiste. This report is not just expected. We knew it was going to happen because the Government has failed to act to protect the most vulnerable. This is a report of shame. One in three households is in energy poverty. The Tánaiste is not a commentator. He is the Tánaiste and the leader of a party in government. We need action now.

There are four weeks left in this sitting of the Dáil. There are people who are going to St. Vincent de Paul and people who are queuing up for food parcels today. There are people sitting at home wondering how they are going to meet their bills next week. They need Government action right here, right now. The Tánaiste says the Government will assess how prices work out in the medium term. Open your eyes. We know they are only going in one direction. The ESRI points that out. Energy prices will continue to rise in the autumn. Even if they do not, people are struggling in the here and now. They need action from Government. Is the Minister for Finance on board with bringing in new measures, which would be the first time, contrary to what the Taoiseach and the Minister have said? When will the Government make a decision on such measures?

That was another cheap shot-----

It was a factual shot.

It was true, though.

-----and a very personal shot, which says a lot about the Deputy and the character of the kind of person he is. It is particularly strange coming from him because he was prosecuted. He abused and mistreated a member of An Garda Síochána. He was prosecuted for that and found guilty. He got away without a conviction because of his age at the time but he was actually prosecuted. He was arrested. That is what happened to him. There are a huge number of convicted criminals in his party and in the wider republican family, whether they be tax dodgers like Slab Murphy, a good republican according to Deputy McDonald - a good republican, a tax dodger - or people who have been convicted for murder. We know what his party's attitude is to rape and paedophiles and what it has done in that regard. The Deputy's cheap shots say a lot more about him than they do about me.

Shameful. Scraping the barrel, Tánaiste. Shame on you.

Will the Tánaiste answer anything?

The people will decide.

The courts will decide, as they decided on Deputy Doherty. He was prosecuted and taken to court.

One in three are in energy poverty.