Anti-cartel and fuel price pressures
Deputy Clendennen sought stronger CCPC powers to tackle bid rigging and cartels amid rising fuel prices and wider economic anxiety. The Tánaiste said the Government was keeping price impacts under review and would assess any intervention carefully.
Last week I submitted a paper to the Department of Tourism, Enterprise and Employment to protect customers, an equal playing field for businesses, to address bid rigging and to dismantle cartels. We saw the conflict that is taking over the Middle East at the weekend. We have seen the price of brent crude oil increase by 26% in global markets over the last 90 days and we have seen the same increase domestically of 50% to 60%. I welcome the expansion of the fuel allowance but despite that, there is economic anxiety about what is happening. Will we see greater powers for the CCPC to ensure there is timely conclusion to such actions and more impactful consequences when people are found guilty of malpractice?
Second, if we see prolonged conflict in the Middle East, will there be financial intervention from the Government or will it at least consider it as soon as possible?
Comment on this
I thank Deputy Clendennen for raising this issue. He is entirely right; there is a real sense of anxiety in general, including economic anxiety. What is going on in the world is frightening and deeply concerning. As I said yesterday in the finance committee and today in the Dáil and as the Taoiseach has also said, the Government keeps all of these matters in terms of interventions under review in terms of the impact of prices, and we will continue to keep this under review. We have to get a sense of the economic impact. It is a very different economic reality if this is something short versus if it is something that goes on for weeks and months. We continue to monitor it. We also need to work on it at European level and that is why I will engage with Eurogroup colleagues on Monday, specifically on the issue of energy affordability which is an agenda item.
I thank the CCPC for the work it does. I happened to have an opportunity to meet with it at the Cabinet committee on the economy. It is our intention to give the CCPC further powers and there will be legislation forthcoming in relation to that. In the here and now, within its existing powers, it has opened an urgent investigation into reports of price gouging.
I would encourage all Members of the Oireachtas to provide any information or evidence they have in relation to price gouging for that investigation.