Households to receive third energy rebate early next year

Leo Varadkar also said that a cap on energy prices cannot be entirely ruled out. Picture: Danny Lawson/PA Wire

Households are set to receive a third energy rebate to help with the cost of bills early next year on top of a payment before Christmas, the Tánaiste has indicated.

Leo Varadkar said it would make "no sense" to help people with energy bills this year and then leave people "on their own" if prices continue to soar next Spring.

He said the Government has to be "dynamic" and must be prepared to change the response, he also warned that this will not be a short-term crisis and so supports must reflect this.

"It would seem to me to make no sense to help people with their bills before Christmas and then say, in the new year, in the spring, next winter if things are just as bad, 'well, now you're on your own'. That doesn't stand to reason for me. 

"One thing I'm very conscious of is that utility bills land every two months, so it won't be enough in my view just to help people before Christmas. People will need help after Christmas as well. Perhaps throughout next year."

Speaking at the Fine Gael think-in in Kilkenny, Mr Varadkar indicated that a price cap and the option of a windfall tax on profits made by energy companies is still very much on the table ahead of this month's Budget.

"There's two ways that we can help people with the energy bills, one is the price cap system, which is the model the UK is going down. The other is to help people with energy credits or discounts," he said.

Mr Varadkar said that he would like to see funds set aside to put into a rainy-day fund, pointing to the fact that the Government had some "cash on hand" when the pandemic hit.

However, he said that the exact figure that would be put into such a fund still has to be determined and will depend on the exact surplus.