I am glad to get the opportunity to raise the issue of the cost of fuel, which is impacting on everyone on the road, whether it is the man going to work in the car, the mother taking children to school or the man filling up his lorry to transport goods or filling a construction work vehicle. Kerry is far away from everywhere and is impacted more than many other places. The increase in the cost of fuel is massive. The pumps along the road tell the story, with prices at €2.15 or €2.20 a litre. People are at their wits' end trying to stay on the road.

Work is slowing. People building new houses and even those building one-off houses are pausing and wondering what they will do. Farmers are paying €1.60 or €1.70 a litre for green diesel. Bus operators are tied into contracts. There is a problem with taxis at night; they are just not operating because it is not worth their while. We see where trawlers are parking up. One transport company, close to the Minister in Cork, is parked up this week.

The Government is taking almost double in tax now from fuel than it did 12 months ago. Surely it is time to give back some of the extra tax it has taken to the people on the road? They need it to stay going and October is too far away. There is talk of mini-budgets and emergency budgets but the Minister has said the normal budget time is when it will be dealt with. These are not normal times. People are paying to try to stay on the road and fill their cars or other vehicles. They are not paying normal prices now.

The Government must keep work going and this is the time to intervene. We recognise that the Government gave back 15 cent or 20 cent per litre on fuel a couple of months ago but that is not enough now. Fuel prices have gone way up again and it is now time to intervene and ensure that work stays going. The Government will reap the dividends if work continues anyway but if it stops, the Government will not even get core taxes because people will not be on the road. They cannot stay going and that is the honest truth.

The Government is not aware of how serious the matter is and how people are suffering. People must travel on long journeys to work from Kerry and they are paying massively to fill their cars and try to stay going. These are not normal times and in rural Kerry people cannot travel without a car or some type of vehicle. They are paying more and suffering more. I am asking the Minister to act now and give them back a sizeable amount of the extra tax the Government has taken.

The Deputy makes a valid point that rising fuel prices have an impact across the board. They affect private citizens in households, of course, but also private enterprise such as contractors, farmers and the delivery of public works contracts. We have made a number of interventions as a Government and we have already spoken about the reduction in excise, which comes at significant cost. Initially it was €320 million until the end of August and it was extended to budget day so the total cost now is well over €400 million. That is the reduction in excise on petrol and diesel.

To ensure school transport services continued up to the end of the year, we provided extra resources and extra money was paid to school transport providers. We were concerned that for many of them it was simply no longer viable to continue providing what is an essential service. We introduced a special scheme of support for hauliers with which I know the Deputy is very familiar.

With private contractors doing public works, I introduced an inflation co-operation framework not just in respect of materials pricing but also in respect of energy and fuel. The State will step in and carry 70% of the extra cost above and beyond normal levels of inflation, backdating that to 1 January. It is a little early to say what is the impact of that but there are some indications that we are seeing a greater willingness among private contractors to take up public works contracts. There was an issue, given the level of inflation and uncertainty and the fact that the contract up to that point provided for no price variation whatever, so the contractor had to carry all the risk. I recognised that was an issue and a change would have to be made.

On the price of fuels at the pump, the levers open to the Government are limited. We could reduce VAT, which is set at 23%, but we would have to do that on everything. Almost half of economic activity is levied at the 23% rate of VAT. A 1% reduction amounts to €500 million per year. That is the truth when it comes to VAT. We have already made a reduction in excise, and with diesel it is the case that when the excise reduction is combined with the diesel rebate scheme, we are at the minimum allowed under the minimum tax directive in the European Union.

We do not have that many options when it comes to reducing the price at the forecourts, which is primarily determined by wholesale prices. The exchange rate is unfavourable currently in respect of the strength of the dollar relative to the euro. There are challenges but the Government will examine all the matters in the period leading up to the autumn.

I thank the Minister for his reply but he has not given much comfort to people who are struggling out there today. I accept and acknowledge what the Government has provided already but it is just not enough. The Minister must admit that the Exchequer has taken in a massive increase in taxation. In the past two weeks alone, fuel prices have increased by 20%. That is coming out of people's pockets. They are on the road and trying to pay for the fuel. I recognise what the Minister said about hauliers but to qualify for that scheme, one must have a haulage licence. Hauliers who are just supplying goods for themselves do not have a haulage licence and they are not benefiting.

Again I say there are people travelling long distances going to work, putting petrol and diesel in their cars, and the Government will have to do more for them. They cannot wait until the budget. The Minister only gave farmers 2 cent off the price of green diesel. God almighty, it is €1.60 and €1.70 per litre today. They are trying to keep going and provide fodder and food for people all over the country. The Government must do something for them. The Minister talks about addressing this in the budget but it must address the kernel of the problem now, which is the extra tax being taken by the Government. There is wriggle room to do something for these people. I am begging the Minister to do something for those people.

The Deputy started his contribution by correctly saying these are not normal times, and I agree with him on that. In normal times a Government would not come out in March and say it would reduce excise by 20 cent and 15 cent. It was an exceptional intervention because of the costs that people face. It happened to coincide with a time when wholesale prices were rising and people felt they did not see any benefit but if the Government had not made the intervention, the prices on forecourts would be 20 cent and 15 cent higher than they currently are.

I have explained that the options open to the Government on fuel are very limited. We could reduce VAT but at a massive cost because it cannot be done for diesel and petrol alone. It would have to be done on half the activity across the entire Irish economy at a cost of approximately €500 million per year for every 1% reduction. It is a massive cost for a measure that is not very targeted. In the budget context, the Government is examining all the options we have to see how we could help. The Deputy has raised a range of different sectors, including contractors, farmers, people delivering public works and, of course, private motorists. We acknowledge those pressures and we will very much take that into account.

Give them vouchers. Do something for them.