I call Deputy Harkin on behalf of the Independent Group.

We are all aware that the wholesale price of gas has rocketed. It was 4.5% this week. With the fear that Russia will not reopen the Nord Stream pipeline, we know that the price is only going to go one way. Given that approximately 50% of our electricity is generated from gas-fired power stations, that means that for everybody the price of electricity is escalating. The issue of the impact on householders has already been raised here this morning. I fully support that.

I want to raise with the Tánaiste this the impact on small retailers, especially small independent retailers. They are not at the moment and will not be able to pay their electricity bills. I have spoken to many of them. They are genuinely concerned that they will not be able to continue trading. Honestly, I believe this is not a case of somebody crying wolf when retailers tell us that 18 months ago they were paying 12 cent per unit and that they are now paying almost 30 cent. They just cannot take that hit. One of them said to me that politicians do not realise how much at risk that small retailers are. They were including me in that comment. Another spoke of the frightening time that they are facing. The Tánaiste and I both know that it is not just electricity costs that have escalated, but costs for packaging and wages. They are not complaining about that, but they have to bear those costs. The problem is that whatever working capital or contingency they have, they have eaten into it. Many are at the end of their rope as the cost of doing business, as one of them said to me, has just gone out the door. Many smaller stores are now trading at below break even.

These are resilient people. They have survived. They want to acknowledge the assistance that they got from the Government during Covid-19, but they need temporary support. They need some stability so that they can plan for at least the next six months and can talk to their banks. Some of the proposals they have include some kind of price freeze on electricity or a rebate system when energy costs as a percentage of turnover increase over predetermined thresholds. They want a recognition that many energy providers are making huge profits. The Government needs to look at some intervention here. A temporary suspension of commercial rates would help. They are short-term measures. They have long-term proposals as well. I would like to hear if the Tánaiste can give them any respite for the serious few months that lie ahead.

I want to say at the outset that I, as Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment, and the Government understand that businesses have endured some really difficult years with Brexit, the restrictions related to the pandemic and now, of course, inflation particularly when it comes to energy costs.

I think it is fair to say that this Government has not been found wanting when it has come to helping businesses get through difficult periods, whether it was the wage subsidy scheme to help businesses to keep their staff on; the Covid restrictions support scheme, which helped with overheads; the new small company administrative rescue process arrangement that allows businesses to restructure if they become burdened by debts and survive; and the reduction in VAT for the hospitality sector. While many businesses are struggling, I think it is fair to point out that most are doing well. That is evidenced by the fact that there are 2.5 million people at work in Ireland currently, more than two thirds of whom work for small businesses in the SME sector. We see the tax receipts coming in from VAT and company profits. There have been very few insolvencies in the last year or two, although I think that figure is likely to rise. While every business is different and some have very high energy bills, the average business spends between 5% and 10% of its outgoing on energy costs.

We are working on some schemes that may be helpful for businesses. I do not want to raise expectations too high. We are not going to be able to step in and pay the electricity and gas bills of every business across the country, or even many businesses across the country. Under the EU state aid framework, we have submitted proposals for an inflation crisis-related loan scheme for businesses, which will be similar to those in place for Brexit and Covid currently, and potentially a grant scheme for businesses that face viability issues as a consequence of energy prices. That would be restricted, under the terms of state aid, to businesses that are in manufacturing and exporting and would not apply to retail.

One of the areas where we are already helping, and where we can help more, is in helping businesses to reduce the amount of energy they use and to make energy savings. I looked at it recently and there are actually 20 different schemes that businesses can apply to get help from Government to carry out an energy audit and to get capital grants for the installation of equipment such as solar panels and insulation and for micro-generation. That is really important because it might be the case that we are not just experiencing an energy price shock. It could be an energy price shift. While energy prices might fall back, they might remain at a high level permanently. The best response to that is a long-term one, reducing the amount of energy we use and increasing the amount of renewable energy and micro-generation that we produce. That is an area where the Government already has 20 schemes in place to help businesses. I want businesses to become more aware of those schemes. I also want to improve them.

I did refer to the acknowledgement of the support of the Government during Covid; that was made very clear to me.

The Tánaiste stated that most businesses are doing well. I am not so sure that is the case. I think a lot of businesses are on the brink. They are running out of working capital and contingency. While that may not be apparent in the figures that we have currently, it is actually happening on the ground. The Tánaiste spoke about the fact that most businesses spend 5% to 10% of their outgoing on energy costs. However, for independent food retailers energy costs are the second highest after wages. That sector is hit so much harder by increasing energy costs. The Tánaiste talked about long-term schemes that are available, but when your back is to the wall and you have no working capital, a long-term scheme - good and all as they may be - is not as attractive as it might sound in better times. Short-term measures need to be looked at now.

It may well be that the Deputy is right. It is often the case that we experience things on the ground and hear about them anecdotally, yet it is weeks or months before the official statistics prove what we know already. That is what we are seeing now with the statistics on inflation. According to the Central Statistics Office, CSO, prices are rising at 9.6% a year. I think everyone knew that weeks and months ago. In fact, it feels to me that they are actually rising faster than that. I expect that we will see the rate of inflation rise above 10% before it falls back, and it will fall back.

On businesses, I take the Deputy's point in relation to working capital. We have helped over 10,000 businesses already through loan guarantee schemes. However, at the moment, the only businesses that can qualify for them are those that can demonstrate that they have been adversely affected by Brexit or Covid. We have applied to the European Commission for permission to extend those working capital loan schemes to businesses that can demonstrate that they have been adversely affected by the crisis in Ukraine, i.e. energy prices. That is the first step. We made a submission to the Commission to do that. We will have to legislate to do that. It is one of the things that I definitely intend to do. I am also looking at other initiatives that might help, particularly around the longer term response.