Green policies are needed in Government to protect against further oil price increases, said Ciaran Cuffe TD today, as the price of a barrel of oil reaches $119.

Deputy Cuffe said: “In Government the Green Party doubled wind energy in Ireland over the last four years. A Green Party presence in the next government can ensure that people are insulated from fuel price shocks. We provided over €100 million in energy grants over our time in government, and increased fuel allowances for those most in need.

“We are the only party that understand the seriousness of this issue and the urgent need to wean Ireland off our dependence on imported foreign oil. Peak oil means that the price of fossil fuel energy is likely to remain extremely volatile for decades. Ireland is amongst the most oil dependent countries in the world and oil price volatility will have extremely negative impact on our economy.

“In Government we brought forward major initiatives to boost domestic renewable energy which has doubled and now accounts for 15% of our total production. We introduced the home energy insulation retrofit schemes and create jobs, changed the car tax system to promote cars with lower energy consumption, changed the planning laws to prevent sprawl and introduced the carbon levy to send a price signal to consumers of the coming age of higher energy prices.

“Rising energy prices are outside of our control and spending €6 billion per year on imported fossil fuel energy doesn’t make sense when we can create thousands of green jobs here at home. We must move away from our dependency on imported fuel. We are the only party who have had the foresight and ideas to implement these policies which are vital to long-term prosperity,” concluded Deputy Cuffe.