Minister puts a lot of energy into being way out of touch

THE cascade of price increase announcements from the energy companies is as predictable as it is dispiriting. The entire country is alarmed at such dramatic increases with households wondering what they will have to sacrifice in order to keep the heat on this winter.

But while the Government makes non-committal noises about seeing us right, Eamon Ryan’s tone-deaf intervention about outlawing gas and oil boilers in favour of more expensive heat pumps just piles the pressure on modest households whose boilers may be about to pack in or owners of new-builds.

Is it news to the leader of the Green Party, pictured, that many hard-pressed households are taking a holiday from their green lifestyle this winter in order to survive?

Does he not know that log burners and open fires are to be pressed into service, irrespective of the environmental hazards but in pursuit of the most immediate goal of saving ourselves from hypothermia?

Most of us understand that this will exacerbate the energy crisis we face in the same way as our reliance on fossil fuels.

It’s a complex chicken and egg situation but it’s unlikely to be solved in the midst of an energy emergency which promises to push people to the pin of their collar financially.