Families hammered by the cost of living crisis are being urged to join a national protest to tell Government: “Enough is enough.”
It comes as 1.2million Electric Ireland customers will be hit with combined further increases of €477 for gas and electricity from tomorrow.
Hard-pressed households have faced 58 energy price hikes in 18 months – with thousands forking out an additional €1,439 a year on power and heating bills.
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TD Richard Boyd Barrett last night slammed the “shameless profiteering” of energy companies increasing prices while posting eye-watering profits.
Bord Gais Energy posted profits of €39.5million in the first six months of 2022 – up 74% on 2021 – despite raising prices last August and October 2021 and again in April.
Meanwhile, Electric Ireland’s parent company posted profits of €679m in 2021 – up 10% on 2020.
Mr Boyd Barrett said: “These companies are making staggering levels of profit while at the same time their customers are being inflicted with utterly unaffordable increases. We’re facing a really bleak winter for huge numbers of pensioners, workers and people on modest incomes who cannot absorb the level of increases we are now facing.”
He called on the Government to impose price controls and a windfall tax on energy companies.
Ireland South MEP, Fianna Fail’s Billy Kelleher, is also pushing for a windfall tax.
He said: “We can’t have a situation where publicly owned companies [and] privately-owned companies are profiteering excessively on the backs of ordinary people during this extraordinary crisis.”
The Cost of Living Coalition’s demonstration will take place on September 24 – three days before the Budget.
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