Government failures saddling ordinary people with rip-off energy bills - Doherty

Sinn Féin spokesperson on Finance, Pearse Doherty TD, has accused the government of pushing the cost of their failures onto households.

Deputy Doherty was commenting following information released to Sinn Féin, which showed that the state has collected €2.5bn in five years in VAT from some of the highest energy bills in Europe. The Donegal TD called on the government to bring forward energy supports for households as part of a cost-of-living package.

Teachta Doherty said: “Households right across this state continue to pay some of the highest energy bills anywhere in Europe.

“At the same time, the government benefits from that failure by collecting record levels of VAT on top of those bills.

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“The higher the cost of energy, the higher the VAT taken. Due to Ireland having some of the highest costs of energy in Europe, we have seen on average half a billion euros being taken in VAT every year.

“This heaps more and more pressure onto households struggling with the cost-of-living crisis.

“Is it any wonder that 440,000 households were behind on their energy bills this year. Households are getting hit from every angle as costs have gone up across the board.

“We need to see measures and reforms to bring down the prices of energy. And the government needs to bring forward a cost-of-living package that includes energy credits and an extension of the VAT reduction.

“The government needs to come to their senses on this issue. By any measure, they have failed to get to grips with the cost of living crisis. Households need to be supported, not hit with more costs at every turn.”