The Aontú leader said there is nothing in the budget to tackle prices at the fuel pumps, soaring energy prices that have left record numbers in arrears, and government squander.
Said Deputy Tóibín: “The country has been in uproar and the major issue that has affected people in that time is how fuel and energy prices are way too high.
“We have the highest electricity prices in the EU, and the second highest in the world. There seems to be nothing to address that in this in the budget.
“It is clear the Government is not listening to the people on the issue of energy. Energy is the most important political issue that is affecting this country at the moment and yet energy issues are not a focus.
“There is nothing in the budget about waste. Waste is stealing services, stealing income and sealing infrastructure from the Irish people. The ability to prevent this type of waste into the future should be in the budget, but it isn’t.
“It’s not enough to stave off excise hikes until after the winter. Those excise hikes need to be gone. ESB is a semi state agency and pays €150m dividend to the government annually. If that dividend was cut, it would reduce household bills by a hundred euro a year.
“Aontú has laid out ways to tackle these issues effectively in our alternative budget. We will introduce a dynamic pricing ceiling at the fuel pump.
“If the price of petrol and diesel increases above €1.90, carbon tax will be removed on a cent per cent basis. This will stabilise the price of petrol and diesel and help families across the country.
“Aontú would end the ESB dividend to the government for 2027. It would cut VAT on electricity from 9% to the EU minimum of 5%, as long as electricity prices remain high. We would enforce accountability and increase the revenue available in the budgetary envelope.”
