Bríd Smith backs motion to cap energy profits, renationalise sector
Bríd Smith spoke in support of a motion from the Rural Independence calling for reduced electricity use by data centres, caps on energy company revenues, price controls and a profit solidarity tax. She said she will fully support the motion, pressed the minister on the stalled solidarity tax and argued for renationalisation of the energy sector.
Support for the motion
She welcomed the Rural Independence motion as refreshingly progressive and noted it is notable for not promoting fossil fuels, LNGs or Barry Row. She highlighted the motion's call to reduce electricity use by data centres and its proposals to cap energy company revenues and implement price controls.
Market failures and profit critique
Smith argued that energy company profits have "skyrocketed out of control" with no justification and said the market has failed and no longer works. She pressed the minister on when the government will act on a profit solidarity tax, saying the Taoiseach had previously said it would be considered while profits continue to rise.
Renationalisation argument
She outlined a proposal to renationalise the energy sector, recalling the state's early choices to create housing, health services and an energy sector. She referenced Ard na Krusia, the creation of the ESB and Bord na Moana as historical examples of a not-for-profit mandate and said that mandate was removed in 2001 when the sector was deregulated.
How a state-led energy model would work
Smith said removing the profit mandate from the ESB would allow a single state company to produce and deliver electricity to homes and businesses and that the state could buy out private competitors if necessary. She argued that state control would ensure offshore and renewable energy are used as a resource for the people rather than for private profit.
Campaigns, protests and next steps
She praised the Cost of Living Coalition for mobilising trade unions, pensioners and students and noted widespread strikes and protests across Europe over the energy and cost-of-living crises. Smith warned of a difficult winter and said campaign activity will continue, including a march on the 26th of November on housing, into 2023 until the government listens.
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Good morning. I want to really welcome this motion from the Rural Independence today. It is refreshingly progressive and we will fully support it. The motion is unusual coming from the Court as it does in that it does not promote fossil fuels or LNGs or Barry Row or anything else. It is completely absent from it and I am delighted to see that because it is progressive and what it does is call for a reduction in the use of electricity by data centres. Gino has gone into that very thoroughly but it also covers things like putting a cap on the revenues of the energy companies and it details very clearly how the profits of the energy companies have skyrocketed out of control, no justification for them but also calls for price controls which is something that the government must look at. It just does not make sense and I hear it from all the previous speakers calling for intervention in the market, the market that has failed, the market that does not work anymore and it just is the obstinacy of the government not to look at that in terms of making an intervention and putting a cap on energy prices in this country. And the other thing that it does is call very strongly for the implementation of a profit solidarity tax. Now when are we going to, I am going to ask the Minister directly, when is the government going to come back to us and talk about this because months ago it was mooted and the Taoiseach said we would look at it and they are supposed to be looking at it in Europe but it is lying there while the profits increase and the solidarity tax is lying in abeyance. I just want to talk a wee bit about what people before profit would do in terms of the energy sector, all of the above and agree entirely with the motion from the rural independence but we also believe and we have a bill coming forward through the Dáil that we need to renationalise the energy sector. And I will just go over the arguments again, in the early years of the foundation of this state when we had very very little in terms of resources, finances coming into the country, we made a decision as a state that there were certain things we had to do, one was obviously create a housing stock and some kind of a health service but crucially in order to feed into that we had to create an energy sector. And Ard na Krusia and the creation of the ESB and Bord na Moana were attempts by the state to have a not-for-profit mandate electricity system that would turn on the lights and power the entire state and it did. And it did. And it did so in a progressive way. It did so by employing people in decent jobs, giving apprenticeships, keeping the lights on and providing power to every home business in the country at a very very reasonable rate. And that reasonable rate was maintained because the ESB in particular had a not-for-profit mandate right up until 2001 when that was changed. When the energy sector was deregulated and it was thrown open to competition in the open market, the not-for-profit mandate was removed. And now this country has one of the highest levels of energy costs to the consumer in the entire European Union. So we believe the renationalisation of the energy sector is the way to go. And the simple way of doing this is to remove that mandate from the ESB that they must return a profit. And therefore all of the rest of the businesses that are competing for profits would fade off into the background. And if they didn't, the state could buy them over and just have one company that delivered, produced and delivered the electricity to homes and businesses across the country. The other advantage of it, of course, in the current climate would be that it would take over the production of all offshore energy and all renewable energy power. And that would mean that renewable energy, a natural resource, would not be used as a for-profit tool by these greedy energy companies, but rather would be a resource for the people of this country, for the people of this country as a whole. I heard other people refer to it earlier on, but the Cost of Living Coalition has been a very important tool in putting these arguments to the ordinary people, to trade unions, to pensioners, to students and bringing them together to have a loud voice that says to the government, we won't tolerate this. Now, I know there's been general strikes and protests right across Europe over the energy crisis and the cost of living. And the cost of living crisis for us here has not gone away. And the winter will be bitter and cold and post-Christmas people were really going to feel the pinch. So, to that end, we'll be out marching on the question of housing on the 26th of November, with all of the groups I mentioned, but that this campaign will continue right into the new year, into 2023, until this government begins to listen. Thank you, Deputy. Thank you. Take care. Thank you.
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