Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 30 April 2026
53. Deputy Eoin Hayes asked the Minister for Social Protection his Department’s plans to support those most vulnerable to the energy crisis beyond the fuel allowance extension; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [31241/26]
View answerThe Government is committed to protecting vulnerable households from the impact of energy costs through a combination of financial supports, energy efficiency awareness initiatives and investment in programmes to improve the energy efficiency of the housing stock.
The supports provided by the Government are cross-departmental and, in this regard, my Department is represented on the Energy Affordability Taskforce, under the remit of the Department of the Climate, Energy and the Environment.
With regard to income supports my Department provides a range of schemes to assist with energy costs. These include:
• The Fuel Allowance which was increased by €5 from January 2026, is a weekly payment of €38 for 28 weeks, giving a total per recipient of €1,064 each year from October to April. This will support over 468,000 households with their energy costs, at an estimated cost of €557.4 million in 2026.
• Electricity or gas allowances under the Household Benefits scheme, at an estimated cost in 2026 of €230.5 million.
• A Heating Supplement may be paid to assist people that have exceptional heating costs due to ill health, infirmity or a medical condition and are unable to meet those costs out of household income.
• Additional Needs Payments are available to help meet essential expenses that a person cannot pay from their weekly income or other personal and household resources.
As the Deputy is aware, in addition to this, in order to help support vulnerable households with their fuel costs, the Government approved the extension of the fuel season by four weeks until the week ending 1st May 2026; the fuel season was initially due to end in the week ending 3rd April.
The Government will continue to monitor the cost-of-living situation closely. However, the provision of any additional supports would have cost implications and could only be considered while taking account of the overall budgetary context and the availability of financial resources.
I hope this clarifies the matter for the Deputy.
