Cuirfeadh na figiúirí ar fhoilsigh an rialálaí inné maidir le riaráistí fuinnimh imní an domhain ar dhuine ar bith. Tá rabhadh mór dearg ag splancáil do theaghlaigh atá ag streachailt cheana féin leis an mhéid atá in ann dóibh don gheimhreadh. Tá sé seo go léir ag tarlú toisc nach bhfuil faic déanta ag an Rialtas le dul i ngleic leis an sáinn nó chun smacht a chur ar phraghasanna. Tar éis dó gan rud ar bith a dhéanamh fad is a bhí na billí ag dul in airde i gcónaí, bhain sé an creidmheas fuinnimh a thacaigh le daoine teacht slán tríd an gheimhreadh seo caite.

The energy arrears figures published yesterday by the regulator are nothing short of alarming - a flashing red light for what households are already enduring and what lies ahead this winter. They tell us that over 300,000 households are behind on their electricity bills and gas bills tell the same bleak story. A total of 180,000 households are now in arrears with their gas. This means that over one in four households in this State cannot pay their gas bills. This does not even include all the households that are just managing to keep up. These are not just numbers. They are cold living rooms where families sit wrapped in coats because they cannot risk switching on the heat. They are older people rationing warmth terrified of opening their next bill. They are parents hiding final notices hoping their next pay packet will stretch far enough to keep the lights on.

All of this is happening because the Government has done nothing to tackle the rip off and get prices under control. What has been its response to rising bills? It pulled the energy credits that helped people survive last winter. Instead of relief, households are hit once again with Energia, SSE Airtricity, Pinergy, Bord Gáis Energy and Flogas all imposing fresh price hikes pushing 1 million homes into an even more impossible situation than the one they are currently in. What makes this even more galling is that energy companies are refusing to pass on the full reductions in wholesale costs. Families are being squeezed from every direction - by suppliers, by inflation and by the Government's decisions. Let us be clear. These arrears figures only go up to July. That was before we had the cold weather we now have, before the last round of price hikes and before people even turned on their heating so God only knows what the numbers are going to look like this Christmas if this crisis continues.

This Government cannot plead ignorance. It refuses to take on the energy companies; it refuses to empower the regulator; it refuses to reform hedging prices; it refuses to deal with a pricing system, the PSO and the network charges; and it refuses to stop more and more data centres driving up costs. It will not act. It will not intervene for customers so here we are with the worst period of energy arrears since records began in this State. I will ask the Tánaiste plainly because he cannot deny the fact that we have never seen so many people who cannot meet their basic bills of electricity and gas. How can he justify cutting energy credits when bills are higher now than they were this time last year and are rising even more? How can he justify taking away those energy credits people were dependent on when 300,000 households are behind on their electricity bills, over one in four households cannot pay their gas bills and arrears are rising faster than records have ever shown? Does the Tánaiste acknowledge that the number of families in energy arrears is increasing under his watch and that unless the Government intervenes, we will see a serious winter of discontent for so many families?

I am very conscious of the cold weather in the past number of days and the fact that a cold weather alert issued from Met Éireann in the past hour or so but I want people at home - I want to speak specifically to people at home - to know that unlike the assertions made by Deputy Doherty, this Government is intervening and taking real actions to help people with fuel poverty this winter and in the here and now. We have done a number of things to help. In the budget only a few weeks ago, we took the decision to increase the fuel allowance. The fuel allowance is now worth over €1,000 per year for that fuel allowance period we are now in. More people, families and households than ever before are getting access to direct assistance with their fuel bills from the Government. This is an action we took. I would encourage everybody to look at the broadened criteria and put in their application for the fuel allowance.

Second, not only have we increased the fuel allowance, we also expanded it to those receiving the working family payment. The Deputy talks a lot about working people and working families in this Dáil. This is why we have decided to make sure that people who are in receipt of the working family payment are able for the first time to receive the fuel allowance. This means that over 450,000 households or roughly one quarter of all homes in this jurisdiction will qualify for the payment.

We are supporting over 500,000 households, many of them pensioners, with an allowance of €420 towards their gas or electricity bills.

Under the household benefits package, 532,000 homes are receiving support, another practical measure being funded by this Government. We took the decision in the budget only a few weeks ago to freeze VAT at the lower 9% rate on gas and electricity bills for the next five years to provide that reduced VAT rate not just in the here and now but for the lifetime of the mandate of this Government. We have reduced the PSO levy to directly help people save money on their bills. The Minister, Deputy O'Brien, has met the four largest energy companies and they have confirmed they each have hardship funds in place and are working to support vulnerable customers.

I want to be very clear that this winter, nobody should be afraid to turn on their heat during the cold weather. I hope everyone will help us amplify the message that any person under serious financial pressure can seek an additional needs payment, in addition to what I outlined already, for heating costs through their community welfare officer. On top of these direct financial supports, we are also investing record funding in retrofitting to help people upgrade their homes, make them more energy efficient and make sure people's homes are warmer. The budget for the warmer homes scheme has increased to €280 million, which is an elevenfold increase since 2020. I want to specifically address the issue of disconnections. A disconnection moratorium is in place for registered vulnerable customers from the start of this month until 31 March, and indeed for all customers for the winter period in a few short weeks' time.

Yes, there is always more to do, yes, the cost of energy is a real cost and, yes, we need to look at how we can drive down the cost of energy, move more quickly to renewable energy and how we can do even more to support people, but please do not mislead people, particularly people who might be tuning in to this debate, in terms of the fact that there are supports available to them. There are decisions we have taken that are available to people in the here and now. I would encourage people to know that, to not be cold this winter and to seek the supports and assistance that are in place.

That is going to be cold comfort to people who are listening to this.

They are real people.

Do not be cold this winter. Does the Tánaiste listen to the facts? Does he not listen to what is being said by the CRU and the hard, unvarnished facts? Seventy thousand more households, more families, more individuals - real people - could not pay their electricity bill in the first six months of this year. The record number we are seeing is from the middle of July, the warmest month of the year. There are not just more people than ever before who are in electricity and gas arrears, but the amount by which they are in arrears has also increased. This has happened even with the energy credits supplied last year. The Government's response has been to withdraw those energy credits. How in the name of God does the Tánaiste think these families are going to survive? How does he think they are going to meet their needs this winter? He is telling them not to go cold this winter but people are cold today. People are making these real-life decisions today not to turn on the heat in their house.

Thank you, Deputy.

People have had to make the decision not to pay their gas and electricity bills because of the decisions of the Tánaiste's Government. I put it to him the Government has consciously made it impossible for people to stay warm this winter and I ask him to bring forward energy credits-----

Thank you, Deputy Doherty.

-----to support these families and provide them with a lifeline during these winter months.

Hear, hear.

I am sure Deputy Doherty accepts that in those numbers - those large numbers - are many people who are benefiting, and will benefit, directly from the financial assistance from this Government towards energy costs that I have just outlined, but he never makes those points. His party has a partitionist approach when it comes to energy policy.

And health.

Sinn Féin does not think it is enough for somebody in County Louth to have €1,000 in fuel allowance but thinks someone up the road in Armagh should get by on just £100.

Exactly.

Deputy Doherty's party leads the Executive. The First Minister of Northern Ireland is from Sinn Féin. The finance Minister in Northern Ireland-----

How come Fine Gael is not running candidates in the Six Counties?

Sinn Féin Deputies get upset when I bring this up.

They do not like it, do they?

Why does Fine Gael not run a candidate up there?

We do not like partition; that is the problem.

The finance Minister in Northern Ireland is from Sinn Féin.

Fine Gael could not find it on a map.

Shout, shout, shout.

The economy Minister in Northern Ireland is from Sinn Féin. The Executive is headed up by Sinn Féin. It is the largest party in the Assembly.

Fine Gael is not even up there.

It has not brought forward a cost-of-living package. The fuel allowance is a paltry £100 to £300 compared with €1,000 here.

We do not control the fiscal policies in Northern Ireland.

To the people at home this winter, access our supports but do not fall for Sinn Féin's hypocrisy.