Sinn Féin TD for Dublin South West Seán Crowe has criticised the Government for not doing more to protect workers and families from spiralling fuel costs.

Teachta Crowe said:

“The Government brought a resolution before the Dáil last night to do something about the spiralling costs of petrol, diesel, and home heating oil. I believe that these proposals do not go nearly far enough and there is a risk that these decreases will not last long given the way prices have been increasing steadily over the past fortnight.

“Half measures are not enough when faced with the soaring cost of living we are all experiencing at present.

“Sinn Féin did not oppose the Government’s proposals last night, because we did not want to prevent workers and families getting some relief from these obscene price rises. We put down amendments to give greater protections to families and drive costs down further and I regret that the Government did not support us in that.

“I believe that forecourt operators should commit to passing on any reduction in prices to customers. Any reductions in excise must result in retail prices falling.

“The Government could further remove the excise on fuel and slash the carbon tax on home heating oil if they wished and Sinn Féin would gladly welcome that. It is a choice that they have made not to do so and I find their claims that ‘They are doing all they can’ to be a laughable excuse for doing the bare minimum.”