People Before Profit Cllr Shaun Harkin said,"Energy costs are hitting households in the North just as hard as in the South.
The response from Westminster and Stormont has been equally as abysmal as Leinster House, even though 25% of households here already face fuel poverty and a quarter of children live in poverty. Militant protest forced concessions from the Fianna Fáil/Fine Gael coalition government and has led to a no-confidence vote on their disastrous leadership which People Before Profit representatives will enthusiastically back.
Starmer agreed to a support package for the North of £17m. This is crumbs and won't put a dent in the weekly costs workers, families and organisations are feeling at the petrol pump and in home energy bills. More must be done.
Price caps on fuel costs should be immediately introduced. Presently home heating oil costs are unregulated in the North. Stormont has the power to introduce regulation but has chosen not to, leaving prices to rocket and households unable to heat their homes.
All the Executive parties and the SDLP unanimously supported my March Council motion demanding the Stormont Executive "intervene to protect financially hard pressed households impacted by the costs of the US/Israeli war with price caps and direct payments" and to "enact regulation of home heating oil and stop price gouging by corporations."
Every effort must be made to stop Trump and Netanyahu's barbaric wars and to protect workers, households, organisations and working-class communities from price-gouging and energy profiteering."
People Before Profit Motion Passed Unanimously by Derry City and Strabane District Council:
"Council will write to the British government in support of demands for an emergency package of financial support, including price caps, direct payments and energy bill support, to help families struggling with through the roof energy and cost of living costs.Council supports calls for the Labour government to enact an emergency wealth tax on billionaires and large oil and gas corporations to offset the financial impact on many struggling and vulnerable households as a result of spiking energy costs. Council will write to the Stormont Executive calling on it to intervene to protect financially hard pressed households impacted by the costs of the US/Israeli war with price caps and direct payments. Council calls on the British government and Stormont Executive to enact regulation of home heating oil and stop price gouging by corporations."
