Material for Minister’s Opening Address
at the launch of the
Energy Action Fuel Poverty Conference
6 February 2012
Good morning, ladies and gentlemen and welcome to the Energy Action Conference on Fuel Poverty. I would like to thank Energy Action for inviting me here today to open this conference. Following on from the publication of the Affordable Energy Strategy in November, I am delighted to have the opportunity to speak with those of you who are most involved in negating energy poverty.
The last year has not been as easy one for any of us. We’ve all felt the pinch – from Government Departments to Community Based Organisations and charities – and most especially those who we serve, the people struggling to pay their bills.
I greatly value the work of the many community organisations represented here today, who reach out and make links with those who are often worst off and hardest to reach. I have worked with many of you over the years and I know and understand that it isn’t always the easiest of jobs, but it is rewarding – for those you help and for you yourselves, and I would like to thank you personally for all that you have achieved.
The next few days promise to be crucial to the development and implementation of energy poverty policy. I spoke at this event last year, and noted then the difficulty in transitioning from general numbers in energy poverty to being able to target individual homes. Since then, I have published the Affordable Energy Strategy which sets out a vision for Affordable Energy in Ireland, which is ‘the achievement of a standard of living whereby households are able to afford all of their energy needs and where individuals and families live in a warm and comfortable home that enhances the quality of their lives and supports good physical and mental health’.
Affordable Energy Strategy
The Affordable Energy Strategy sets out 48 practical and tangible actions that will make this achievable, identifying and prioritising those most at risk of extreme energy poverty. These actions will be undertaken across three timeframes. Those that can be delivered within the short-term i.e. less than 12 months, those that will take up to 18 months to deliver and those that are projected to take longer. This reflects the nature of what needs to be done and the complexity of energy poverty, issues which I know you are all familiar with. Anything that can be done in the short term will be immediately actioned by the Inter-Departmental Group and its members.
I can’t stand here and tell you that this Strategy will fix all problems, heal all ills. I can’t promise you a magic bullet. What we can do better is use the resources we have more intelligently – we can work together, collaborate, and ensure that those who need our help most are reached.
IDGAE
I am pleased that my many Government colleagues have come on board in pursuing the actions listed in the Affordable Energy Strategy. I am particularly pleased that my colleague Minister Burton has agreed to review the National Fuel Scheme and Household Benefits Package. The review will focus on how the scheme can integrate better with the efficiency schemes targeted at low-income households and will seek to ensure that an integrated policy approach is taken.
Enhancing the energy efficiency of low-income homes through permanent structural improvements is recognised as the most effective means of addressing energy affordability. To date, energy efficiency improvements in over 80,000 homes have been made under Better Energy: Warmer Homes.
International Experience
We have looked at the approach adopted in other countries, most notably Northern Ireland and England and recognised that promising to eradicate energy poverty would be unattainable in the short term. The economic challenges facing this country are simply too great in the short or medium term. We will hear today from our UK colleagues on their experiences of combating energy poverty, and I’m certain that they will agree that there is no simple formula. Eradicating energy poverty is not something that can be done overnight as the causes are many and require a sustained effort over time. We will do everything in our power to ensure that every policy lever available to us is directed at mitigating energy poverty.
Better Energy: Warmer Homes – Prioritisation
We will see a shift this year in how homes are evaluated for eligibility for Better Energy: Warmer Homes. Demand for the Better Energy: Warmer Homes programme has grown to exceed available resources, and it is necessary to innovate to ensure that the resources available are directed at those who can benefit the most. We have always acknowledged that eligibility for the National Fuel Scheme is something of a blunt instrument and that there must be smarter ways to prioritise the energy poor.
In this regard, the Inter-Departmental Group on Affordable Energy (IDGAE) will work quickly with the community-based organisations and other relevant parties to finalise new eligibility criteria that ensure state resources are directed where they can deliver the greatest good. It is anticipated that criteria will be defined and published early in Q1 2012 and that these criteria will apply to all persons expressing an interest in receiving scheme services from January 1st, 2012.
Pay-As-You-Save
You will be aware that the Programme for Government commitment to move out of state supports for energy efficiency and into a pay-as-you-save scheme after 2013, and this is something that I am very keen to progress. Pay-As-You-Save is a financial model which would allow energy consumers to finance energy efficiency upgrades through the energy savings generated. The Department is working with the Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland (SEAI), the utilities and financial institutions to develop proposals for the introduction of a national pay-as-you-save scheme in line with this timeframe.
You may ask how will this work for low-income households? Perhaps a better question is will PAYS work for low-income households? My belief is that it will work for come, or perhaps a majority – but not all; and we must remain aware of this group as we move forward.
I see Better Energy: Warmer Homes in a different light than the grant schemes – Warmer Homes is designed to assist those who can’t afford any form of energy efficiency measure. The measures outlined in the Affordable Energy Strategy will help to narrow down exactly who those people are, and will assist in making support available to them.
Disconnections
The CER published their most recent report on the level of disconnections in Irish homes last week. This report highlights the urgency of meeting the energy poverty challenge, and the importance of communicating to people that there are other options, there are supports in place, and that they don’t need to be cut off.
Ultimately, Ireland is a price taker on international energy markets and there is a limited amount that we can do to control wholesale or retail prices. What we can do is reduce our consumption of energy, which is why the Affordable Energy Strategy focuses on energy efficiency as the best long-term solution to protecting vulnerable households. We are helping energy consumers to help themselves, by making their homes more energy efficient, by encouraging them to switch suppliers and by ensuring protections are in place for customers.
I do not underestimate the serious challenge of ensuring that our citizens, our people, are living in warm, comfortable and affordable homes. I would like to offer my thanks Energy Action, and to the sponsors (Airtricity, Bord Gais and Electric Ireland) for facilitating such an important event. I wish you all every success over the next two days in overcoming the many challenges facing us.
Energy Efficiency & Affordability Division
February 2012