Number of families struggling to heat their homes has doubled

The public has called for the fuel allowance to be extended.

The number of families struggling to heat their homes has doubled in the last year. According to a study by Friends of the Earth, Irish families are bucking under the pressure of rising fuel costs. They're also struggling to heat their homes due to poor housing conditions. Speaking to Newstalk, Clare O'Connor of Friends of the Earth said; "Ultimately, what the report finds is that the measures announced in the Climate Action Plan and the Government’s Energy Poverty Action Plan fundamentally don’t go far enough to protect households from rising energy bills and to reduce emissions." “So, the short-term relief we are seeing on energy bills at the moment, it doesn’t address the root causes of energy poverty – which are low incomes, high energy costs, and poorer quality housing.”

The public has called on the government to do more, but they have no plans on extending the fuel allowance.

Those on the Fuel Allowance get €33 per week. It is either paid every week or every fortnight. The allowance was introduced to help with the cost of heating your home during the winter. Only one person in each household is given the Fuel Allowance. The Fuel Allowance is paid in late September and payments stop in April. People tend to receive the allowance for around 28 weeks.