Farmers and hauliers are “paying the price” over apparent disagreement between government parties over whether to extend reductions in excise duty for fuel, one TD has said.
At present, reductions for excise duty are in place for petrol, diesel and marked gas oil (green diesel).
These reductions are 21c/L, 16c/L, and 5.4c/L respectively. It was announced in Budget 2023 that these measures are due to expire at the end of this month.
However, the government parties appear to have different feelings on whether these measures should continue.
According to independent TD Carol Nolan, these parties “continue to publicly brief against each other on the issue of extending the reductions in excise duty on fuels”.
“In the last week a number of reports have suggested that Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael are in favour of an extension to the supports while Green Party leader Eamon Ryan and Green Party Minister of State Pippa Hackett have both publicly pushed back against any further extension,” Nolan said.
She added: “The farmers and hauliers that I am engaging with are sick to the back teeth of listening to the three government parties’ squabbling on this issue.
“They need clarity. They need certainty, and they need to be able to plan around any potential increase in costs. None of that is being delivered by government.”
The Laois-Offaly TD said that the issue is also affecting families who are trying to absorb increases in food shopping, home heating oil and mortgage repayments.
“Government may not be able to set interest rates on mortgage repayments, but it most certainly can intervene to take the pressure off in other areas, such as the cost of fuel,” she added.
Nolan called on the government to “set aside their own petty internal bickering and provide the kind of clarity that people urgently need on this matter”.