Social Democrats TD Jennifer Whitmore has criticised the government’s failure to direct the Commission for Regulation of Utilities (CRU) to investigate suspected price gouging by energy companies.
Deputy Whitmore, who is the party’s energy spokesperson, said:
“This government continues to sit on its hands as households across the country are crushed by some of the highest electricity costs in Europe. In 2020, the average annual bill stood at €976 but, in space of five years, this has doubled to an unjustifiable €1,877.
“When I raised this issue with Minister Darragh O’Brien in the Dáil today, he declined to say if the CRU would investigate possible price gouging by energy companies – who continue to fleece their customers despite a 75 per cent drop in wholesale energy costs since the peak of the crisis in 2022.
“Asked about his September 26 meeting with four major energy companies – Electric Ireland, SSE Airtricity, Bord Gáis and Energia – the minister only confirmed they had agreed to set aside hardship funds for struggling customers. But this is not enough – what we need are measures to bring down exorbitant bills in line with wholesale energy price reductions.
“It is unacceptable that it has taken six weeks for the minister to report on his meeting with the energy companies. However, this is hardly surprising when you consider that he secured such an unsatisfactory outcome.
“The government must now act on the recommendations of its own affordability agency and order a full investigation into apparent price gouging by large energy companies and retailers.”
November 6th, 2025