Figures released by Eurostat today show that households are paying twice as much as data centres for their energy in Ireland. Data centre expansion is putting huge pressure on our energy grid and soaking up all the new, renewable energy that we are generating. Not only that but they are not even paying their fair share for the pleasure. This is just the latest in a series of examples where this Government is bending the knee to data centres and big energy companies. It is costing the rest of us. It has failed to properly regulate data centres or energy providers. It wants to import fracked gas now from America, primarily so energy supply to 300 or so large energy users can be protected in the event of an emergency. It is pouring money into grid updates, not for the benefit of ordinary households but in order that they can cope with the huge energy demands of these data centres and large energy users. Ultimately it is going to be paid for by ordinary consumers. To add insult to injury, the energy task force the Government has held up as the answer to the ever-increasing energy bills and which will supposedly solve energy poverty has only met three times. What is it going to do about the cost of energy?

The Minister, Deputy Darragh O'Brien, is advancing the work of the energy affordability task force. We are engaging on it regularly at Cabinet committee level. Separately, the pricing system in the energy market is defined by the Commission for Regulation of Utilities. The pricing is not set by Government. We also need to ensure we protect overall economic investment into the country. Digital infrastructure will play a role in terms of job creation and overall employment growth for Ireland into the medium to long term. We need to have an honest conversation about that. Just attacking data centres and digital infrastructure would undermine our wider economic growth into the long term. The facts are that the pricing system is decided independent of Government. The Minister, Deputy O'Brien, is advancing significant investment into our energy system and grid. We have the PR6, price review 6, which will allow for multi-billion investment into the grid and into our energy system over the next five years, all of which will help our wider renewable energy ambitions. The Minister, Deputy O'Brien, will be bringing forth further actions around energy affordability.