Labour is calling for the Government’s consumer watchdogs who have been “missing at the wheel” to be hauled before a Dáil committee to explain why they are not using their powers to tackle soaring prices.
The party’s finance spokesman Ged Nash has written to the Oireachtas enterprise committee asking the chair to call the CCPA (Competition and Consumer Protection Authority) before it to answer urgent questions.
Mr Nash also said that the European Commission is giving permission to member states to use existing legislation to cap energy costs.
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And so he is calling on the Government to use price cap powers they already have in the Consumer Act to control price rises.
Mr Nash said: “With households across the country feeling the pain at the pumps and regulators appearing to be unfamiliar with their mandate to protect the interest of consumers, it is high time the government reached for the maximum price orders tool in the 2007 Consumer Protection Act.
“With an anticipated 25% rise in some electricity bills on the way, it is alarming that the ESRI has reported that this could see up to 43% of Irish households in energy poverty as a direct consequence.
“It is important to note that the European Commission indicated in May that energy price caps which are a matter for the energy regulator and government, can be an option for countries like Ireland that are not directly linked to the European grid.
“I have written today to the Chair of the Joint Oireachtas Committee on Enterprise to request that the Competition and Consumer Protection Authority be brought before the Committee to interrogate the issue of maximum price orders on everyday essentials during this emergency period.”
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