I hope the Minister will consider the Sinn Féin legislation being debated here this evening to reduce the cost of home heating oil. The households of the vast majority of the people I represent, the people of Roscommon and Galway, use home heating oil. As we approach the budget, there will be a lot of focus on the fuel allowance. The fuel allowance is well and good for those who receive it. It is a help to them. However, the vast majority of working people do not receive the fuel allowance. The evenings are getting darker and there will be pressure in terms of electricity and heating. I ask for a major focus, to include advertising, to be put on the additional needs payment as quickly as possible so that working people will know there is some support for them. No families should be in the dark or cold in their homes as we approach the winter. I ask for the ramping-up of as wide a campaign as possible with regard to the additional needs payments so that workers will know that it is there and that it is not just available to people who are in receipt of social welfare payments.

I thank Deputy Kerrane for raising this issue. I will reflect her requests to the Minister, Deputy Calleary. To echo what I said earlier on, we want to ensure that, through the decisions we make, we prioritise concerns about the cost of living in the budget. I refer particularly to issues relating to home heating oil. Using the social protection system will be critical in mitigating the issues facing those most in need, the 400,000 households who currently benefit from it. I will ask the Minister, Deputy Calleary, to consider what the Deputy has said so that people understand the possibilities of making an application through that process.