Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 16 July 2026
217. Deputy Pa Daly asked the Minister for Climate, Energy and the Environment the additional resources that will be provided to the CRU for its regulatory role with regard to private wires; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [54565/26]
View answerThe Commission for Regulation of Utilities (CRU) is an independent regulator, accountable to a Committee of the Oireachtas and not the Minister.
While CRU is financed by means of a levy on regulated entities, it must receive approval from myself, as Minister, and the Minister for Public Expenditure, Infrastructure, Public Service Reform and Digitalisation, in consultation with the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage, for any increase in its overall staff sanction.
Approval has been given to CRU (March 2026) for 60 new whole time equivalent positions, to meet its strategic objectives. This approval is on the basis that several areas are resourced as a priority including the safety and economic regulation of privately owned electricity infrastructure. This brings the sanctioned headcount for CRU to 263. My Department will liaise with CRU in relation to reporting on the recruitment and allocation of the additional staff, on a phased basis, over the next two years.
Specific resourcing is an operational matter for the CRU in the first instance. The CRU provides a dedicated email address for Oireachtas members (oireachtas@cru.ie), which enables them to raise more specific operational and resourcing matters directly with the regulator.
