Sir, – In response to rising energy costs, Government has announced that the standard rate of fuel allowance will be paid for an additional four weeks in 2026.
However, fewer than three in 10 of all State pension recipients are eligible for fuel allowance. Almost half of recipients of the means-tested State pension do not qualify.
Older households are particularly vulnerable to energy poverty: people aged 65 and over who live alone have the highest rate of income poverty in Ireland, 30 per cent of whom had an income below the poverty line in 2025. Energy poverty can have significant health implications for older people.
Age Action calls for reform to the eligibility conditions for fuel allowance to better address energy poverty among older people.
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CAMILLE LOFTUS,
Head of Advocacy & Public Affairs,
Age Action Ireland CLG,
Dublin 2.
