Danny Healy-Rae: Calls Companies To Account On Soaring Bills
Danny Healy-Rae addressed the Dáil tonight to warn that electricity costs have risen since the closure of Bord na Móna and to demand ministers summon energy companies before committee. He criticised the Greens and Eamonn Ryan for the timing of the closure, defended turf cutting, and raised concerns about retrofitting and the warmer homes scheme ahead of winter.
Danny Healy-Rae told colleagues that every day since Bord na Móna was closed the cost of electricity has gone up. He accused the Greens and Eamonn Ryan of acting in haste and called on the Minister, the Taoiseach and the Senior Minister for Energy to bring energy suppliers before the relevant committee to explain price rises.
He defended the right of households to cut and use turf as a legal source of fuel, saying many were wrongly advised not to cut turf and remain afraid they are breaking the law. He stressed the importance of households having access to their own fuel supplies.
He warned that a proliferation of energy firms appears to be profiteering, with widely divergent price moves and insufficient regulatory action. He said the regulator seemed to be inactive and urged ministers to act to protect consumers, small businesses and working families.
He raised concerns that retrofitting programmes and the warmer homes scheme are not reaching many people who need them, with qualifying rules and delays leaving households excluded. He warned that without fixes many families could be left in the dark and cold this winter.
Main claims and demands
Danny Healy-Rae told colleagues that every day since Bord na Móna was closed the cost of electricity has gone up. He accused the Greens and Eamonn Ryan of acting in haste and called on the Minister, the Taoiseach and the Senior Minister for Energy to bring energy suppliers before the relevant committee to explain price rises.
Turf, household fuel and legal rights
He defended the right of households to cut and use turf as a legal source of fuel, saying many were wrongly advised not to cut turf and remain afraid they are breaking the law. He stressed the importance of households having access to their own fuel supplies.
Regulation and energy company behaviour
He warned that a proliferation of energy firms appears to be profiteering, with widely divergent price moves and insufficient regulatory action. He said the regulator seemed to be inactive and urged ministers to act to protect consumers, small businesses and working families.
Retrofitting, warmer homes and winter risk
He raised concerns that retrofitting programmes and the warmer homes scheme are not reaching many people who need them, with qualifying rules and delays leaving households excluded. He warned that without fixes many families could be left in the dark and cold this winter.
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Transcript
First of all, I want to thank Sinn Féin for bringing forward this very important motion here tonight. And I suppose the first thing I have to say, Minister, I have said several times in the Chamber that every day since we closed down Bournemouth, it is a fact that the cost of electricity has gone up. And I suppose, reflecting on it now, that shouldn't have happened, but Eamonn Ryan and the Greens were in such a hurry. It should never have been closed down until at least we had some preparation made, or enough wind power or enough energy from whatever source to replace it. Even though I would fervently always believe that there was nothing wrong at generating energy or electricity from turf, and indeed cutting turf. I haven't cut myself these days again, and ready to save it, because it's very important to have your own fuel. And people were advised wrongly that there shouldn't be cutting turf. Many people are afraid to cut it, know that they're breaking the law, and they're actually not. They can provide turf for themselves, and it's legal all the time, and I hope that that will never change. I suppose the worst thing that's going on now with the energy companies, there's so many of them, and they're making fortunes on the backs of poor people, and even of working class people, and businesses, small businesses and so forth. And we can't understand what's going on, because some companies are putting up so many percent, other ones are putting up more again. Even in one case then, one company brought it down. So it seems to me that there's no regulation whatsoever, Minister, and the regulator is either asleep, or he's not there, or he's not acting for some reason or whatever, but it's not good enough. And I'm calling you, Minister, and the Taoiseach, and the Senior Minister for Energy, to bring these electric companies in before us into the Raktus committee, whichever one is relevant to them, whether it is energy, or finance, or whatever. Because people out there, the only people on the ground that we are representing, Minister, they are the people that we are answerable to. You talk about retrofitting, Minister O'Brien said that, you know, there's so much going into retrofitting, but there's so much people that the retrofitting isn't benefiting at all, and we'll have to have a lot of money to match up with the grant if we were to qualify. The warmer homes schemes, I know someone last week, many people are being excluded, Minister, because they won't qualify, and they don't be told for a year and a half, and they're waiting for it. That's not on at all, and that should be rectified. Minister, I, like everyone else, is afraid that many people will be in the dark and cold this winter.