The Government has utterly failed to tackle the energy rip-off through inaction, with the national energy affordability task force meeting only three times since Government formation and no action on cutting energy costs while this crisis continues unabated. A total of 360,000 households are at risk of being cut off due to stealth disconnections relating to pay-as-you-go meters while 300,000 people are in arrears and older people are afraid to turn on their lights to cook. Companies are hiking unit costs at contract breaks with seemingly no notifications to customers and the CRU is asleep at the wheel lacking direction from the Government. What is the Government going to do? Is it going to make the CRU deal with this crisis? Unit costs are going up and people are not being told about it in advance. What is the Government going to do about it?

I dealt with this issue during Leaders' Questions. In the budget, we brought in specific measures to target those most in need and most under pressure as a result of the cost of living and the elevated level of the cost of living over the past four years, which is easing. Nonetheless prices are still high for people generally. In the budget, we brought in significant measures to deal with that.

In terms of affordability, the CRU and the task force have published their work in respect of this. We will work with the European Union in respect on energy pricing given that the system and model that operates within the EU has impacts here and in terms of our own regulatory framework but that will take time to develop. Regarding the budgetary measures we have taken, we do not agree with universal supports, particularly providing support for those who do not need it, which seems to be Sinn Féin's position.