I will read some headlines for the Taoiseach. One from RTÉ states, "Prepay energy customers will not be cut off, says Taoiseach", while another from the Irish Independent states, "Pay-as-you-go energy customers will not be disconnected over winter – Taoiseach", and thejournal.ie states, "Taoiseach confirms pay-as-you-go utility customers will not be disconnected if unable to top up". This is very clear and reassuring for the 340,000 electricity customers and the 120,000 or so gas customers on meter. The headlines are based on comments that the Taoiseach made on RTÉ's "This Week" programme. It would cause people to breathe a sigh of relief and think it was okay, in that, if they do not have money to put in the machine to top up the meter this winter, their lights will not go off or their heat go out.

The only problem is that those comments are not accurate, are they? They are spin such as that the Taoiseach tried to give earlier to Deputy McDonald. He is just playing with words because the truth, and I ask for a clear answer on this, is that as things stand, these people will be cut off electricity or gas when their meters run out of money and they run through the €20 overdraft known as emergency credit. These are among the people on the lowest incomes in the country and include 90,000 households that have previously experienced electricity debt. They are not being protected from disconnection this winter. Instead what the Government is actually saying is that these people can go to the community welfare officer and look for support. There is no guarantee that they will not be disconnected.

The Taoiseach needs to act now to guarantee that nobody will be left without heat or electricity this winter because they cannot afford to pay. He can do that very simply by extending the emergency credit, as was done during Covid.

This scandal is just the latest abuse by the prepay companies of their customers. They are highly profitable companies engaged in predatory practices. PrepayPower is the biggest prepay operator. It is owned by two of the richest men in Ireland. It increased its profits by 27% last year. It increased its prices three times this year and two times last year. If people want to leave PrepayPower, they are faced with a blizzard of potential charges amounting to well over €100 to dissuade them. The companies are effectively holding people hostage. Those exit charges should be banned entirely.

This is only one section of households subject to extra abuse. There is another. I have received multiple communications from people in apartment complexes on district heating systems. One here is from Lansdowne Gate, where gas prices have increased by 300%, unit rates have increased from 7 cent per kilowatt-hour to 27 cent per kilowatt-hour. Tens of thousands of people are in a similar situation. Even if they do not use the bills, they are still faced with extraordinary increases because of the network service charge which goes on top of the standing charge. The Taoiseach tells them to shop around but they cannot do so. These people have no choices. It is an entirely unregulated sector.

This is clear. It proves the madness of a privatised, liberalised system. The energy system should be renationalised and run in the public interest. At the very least, will the Taoiseach intervene to ensure that nobody will have their lights go out or heat cut off this winter because they do not have money to put in the meter?

The Government has intervened.

It has not.

We have intervened. I reject Deputy Murphy's presentation of this. The measures we have taken of putting cash into people's accounts and reducing the bills are unprecedented. I read out the list. The measures we have taken have an impact. The impact they should demonstrably have is that people should not be cut off, by definition, given the scale of the energy credits, free fuel allowance and double payments, right across the board. Very substantial provision has been made right to the end of this year and into the two bill periods in early spring.

In addition, social protection is there to protect people from being disconnected in the event of their making a presentation to say that if they do not get "X", their electricity will be cut off. The CRU has also provided strong protections with regard to this. People should not have their heating or electricity cut off in the middle of winter.

The Government will work with providers and the CRU, the statutory body regulating this area. The Deputy is too dismissive of the extraordinary measures that have been included in the budget in respect of supports given to people on the lowest incomes in terms of the variety of payments that I outlined earlier. That was not spin. It is reality. The Deputy tends to do a lot of spin, when it suits, on a whole range of issues.

These are facts that have been outlined with regard to the budget 2023 measures we have taken. There is now €600 in energy credits. There is a lump-sum payment of €400 to fuel allowance recipients and a double-week payment to all qualifying social protection recipients in October, and the normal Christmas bonus will be paid. There is an extra €500 for recipients of working family payments and carer support grants and a double child benefit payment in November. There is a once-off payment before Christmas of €200 to recipients of the living alone allowance and €500 to those on disability allowance, invalidity pension and the blind pension and additional funding across the board for a range of not-for-profit and voluntary organisations to help with energy costs and so forth. These measures will have an impact.

If we did not have all of those measures, I accept the point that there could be disconnections and so on. However, these measures will have an impact and we will keep monitoring how this works in reality.

We have an idea from the future pricing as to where the costs or price rises could go in early spring in particular and towards the end of the year. We will continue to work with all concerned to ensure people are not cut off.

I do not agree at this stage with the idea of nationalising the entire energy system. That would have enormous cost implications that would have to be worked out and I do not think the Deputy has made any presentation in respect of that.

On Sunday the Taoiseach said prepay energy customers will not be cut off. Today he says prepay customers should not be cut off. Which one is it? You are the Taoiseach and you have the power to prevent the disconnections. What you are actually saying today is that these people have got enough money and sure it will be their own fault if they run out and are not able to put money in their meters. However, the Government has not given them enough money. These are some of the most vulnerable people in our country and it is a simple technical question. The Government can extend the emergency credit so prepay customers will not be cut off. If you are on a bill, once the moratorium comes in you are protected and will not be cut off but as things stand prepay customers can be cut off. If they do not put money in their meters they will run through the €20 overdraft, which is the only real thing the CRU has done to protect people. That €20 is half a week's electricity and then those people can be cut off. I am looking, and I would say they are too, for a guarantee that no prepay customers will be cut off this winter.

I thank the Deputy.

The way to do it is very simple.

I thank the Deputy but we are over time.

The Government did it during Covid. It should extend the emergency credit to protect people.

To be fair, the CRU has done more than that. It has increased the emergency credit of no less than €20 but it has also provided a reduction in the debt repayment level on pay-as-you-go meters from 25% to a maximum of 10%. Consequently, €20 would have €2 deducted to pay debt. That came into operation on the first day of this month. There is also an obligation on suppliers to advise their prepayment customers who are in debt of other payment options available to them, such as billpay, and an obligation on suppliers to place their customers who are on financial hardship meters on the most economic tariff. Then we have the additional protection of emergency social welfare payments to ensure people can pay their bills.

There is no guarantee.