A record number of Irish households are struggling to pay their energy bills, with over 300,000 homes in arrears on electricity payments by the end of May, new figures reveal.
The concerning statistics show 301,000 households behind on electricity bills, while another 175,000 domestic gas customers and over 27,000 small businesses are also in arrears.
The figures have prompted calls for urgent government intervention to address the growing energy affordability crisis affecting Irish consumers.
Sinn Féin MEP Lynn Boylan criticized recent price increases by energy providers and called for immediate support measures. “We have been arguing for a permanent solution for years now, but they will still need those one-off supports until that starts to take effect,” she told Newstalk.
Boylan highlighted the need to reform network charges that appear on all energy bills, particularly after regulators announced increased charges for households and small businesses last month.
The MEP accused the government of prioritizing data centers over struggling households, stating on social media: “The government has no interest in cutting your energy bills. They’re happy to make you pay more, while cutting energy costs for data centres.”
She emphasized that tackling energy costs must be a priority in the upcoming budget, warning that “300,000 people can’t afford for the government to keep sitting on their hands.”