Charles Ward: Donegal families crushed by fuel and oil surge
Charles Ward addresses a Sinn Féin motion about rapidly rising petrol and home heating oil prices that are hitting families across Donegal. He details sharp increases between February 28 and today and calls for urgent intervention to stop what he calls a rip-off.
Summary of the issue
Charles Ward outlines how pump prices and home heating oil have jumped dramatically in recent weeks, forcing many households to pay an extra 30 to 50 euros a week on fuel and seeing 1,000 litres of heating oil in Donegal rise from 940 euros to 1,650 euros in just 18 days.
Impact on families
Ward describes the real-life consequences: families are now paying between 150 and 200 euros a month extra on transport, many homes rely on oil central heating, and older houses lose heat quickly. He warns that households are effectively choosing between heating and eating.
Local constraints and infrastructure
The speaker highlights that public transport is effectively non-existent for many in Donegal, so fuel price hikes hit hardest those who have no alternative but to drive and to heat older, damp homes to prevent damage.
Call for action
Speaking in support of a Sinn Féin motion proposed by Deputy Doherty, Ward calls on colleagues to intervene to end the rip-off and to provide practical help to constituents who are being squeezed by runaway energy and fuel costs.
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I welcome this motion for Sinn Féin from Deputy Daugherty. Families across Donegal have watched in despair as the price of the pumps have continued to creep up and home heating oil has completely spiralled out of control. The price of the pumps has gone up so much that families are paying at least between 30 and 50 euros a week extra just to fill up their cars. So for example a 1.6 litre family car is costing an extra 32 euros to fill up compared to last month. A two litre car is costing an extra 50 euro to fill up compared to last month. Families are down now between 150 and 200 euros a month on transport alone but since last month the price of home heating oil has nearly doubled and on February the 28th a thousand litres of heating oil in Donegal was 940. Two days later it had risen to 1015 and then today at lunchtime a thousand litres of heating oil in Donegal is 1650. Over 700 euros of difference in just 18 days. It's scandalous and no family can afford this. The average family in Donegal is out the guts of a thousand euros a month and how can families be expected to sustain this? Families in Donegal don't have the option of public transport or it's basically non-existent and every price hike is like an attack on them because where they live and as far as most houses in the county are older and rely on oil central heating which is out of control price wise so they're choosing between heating and eating. My constituents are bearing the brunt of this and the defective concrete families added an unbearable cost. They keep the heating on every day of the year just to keep the house to keep the damp down. The houses don't hold the heat so I'm asking you to intervene and end the rip-off and help families that are being squeezed.
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