The revelation that charities have seen a 24% increase in requests for help with gas and electricity is another indication of the increasing impact of inflation on the lives of citizens, according to the Independent TD Michael Fitzmaurice.<\/p>\n

The elected representative for the Roscommon-Galway constituency said: \u201cLife under the recovery is being dominated by the threat and the consequences of inflation.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe fine words about record employment levels mean little to working and low-income families who are being forced to choose between rent, food, and fuel.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe realities for those who get up increasingly early to go to work are grim.<\/p>\n

\u201cHome heating oil is up by a third and electricity bills have increased on average by more than a quarter compared with before the pandemic.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf such increases continue, spread out over the course of the year, households will this year pay for the equivalent of three months\u2019 more energy use than in 2019.<\/p>\n

\u201cHome heating oil has increased by a third in eighteen months. Gas prices have risen 21% on average.<\/p>\n

\u201cPeople are now starting to ration when they heat their homes. Fuel inflation is the beast that won\u2019t go away and its tentacles are spreading.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe reality is that in March 2020 a litre of green diesel for a tractor cost between 41 cent and 42 cent per litre for the farming community, the contractors who do the work and indeed the builders around the country who work machines for building houses. Now it costs between 92 cent and 94 cent in bulk.<\/p>\n

\u201cFor the people who drive to work every day, white diesel today costs \u20ac1.68 and petrol \u20ac1.78. These are people who, as the T\u00e1naiste has said before, get up early in the morning and go to work.<\/p>\n

\u201cI fully agree with looking after the people who are on low incomes, such as those on the fuel allowance, and there has been much talk of that.<\/p>\n

\u201cHowever, what is this Government’s plan for the rest of us? What is the Government\u2019s plan for the next three to six months for the farmer whose fertiliser has now gone from \u20ac350 or \u20ac400 depending on the type to \u20ac870 or \u20ac970, again dependent on type?<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat is going to happen the contractor who cuts the silage for the farmer with the Government putting in another carbon tax in May on green diesel?<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat is the plan for the general household who will probably be down \u20ac2,000 to \u20ac3,000?<\/p>\n

\u201cAlas, there doesn\u2019t appear to be one,\u201d Fitzmaurice concluded.<\/p>\n

For further information contact Michael Fitzmaurice at 086-1914565<\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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