Families in Louth struggling to deal with 'rapid rise' in fuel costs - TD

Local Sinn Féin TD Ruairí Ó Murchú has said Louth families are struggling to cope with the "unrelenting cost-of-living crisis". 

It comes ahead of a Sinn Féin motion on the issue which is set to go before the Dáil on Wednesday. 

Deputy Ó Murchú said the debate will give the government "an opportunity to finally act to protect workers and families facing severe financial pressure".

He said families in Louth have "already been struggling through an unrelenting cost-of-living crisis and the rapid rise in the cost of petrol, diesel and home heating oil is making an already difficult situation, created by the illegal attack on Iran by the United States and Israel, far worse."

The Sinn Féin TD accused the government of "sitting on their hands while costs spiral out of control" and said the jump in heating oil and fuel costs have "frightened people" and put households under "enormous pressure". 

"Record numbers of households are already struggling to pay their energy bills, with hundreds of thousands in arrears and many more on the brink. The number of people at risk of poverty has also increased."

"In that context the government’s failure to act on soaring fuel costs is simply unacceptable."

"The debate will allow TDs to decide whether they stand with struggling households or with a government refusing to act."

"Families are being hammered by rising costs. This motion gives the government and every TD an opportunity to back immediate action to bring fuel prices down and provide real relief to households,” he said. 

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Taoiseach Micheál Martin has not ruled out introducing cost-of-living measures and said the government is "keeping everything under review". 

He noted that "people are under a lot of pressure" and said the government's focus will be on "those most in needs and those most impacted". 

Funded by the Local Democracy Reporting Scheme.