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Cost of food, famine and Russian sanctions to take centre-stage home and abroad

Inside Politics: Irish people have seen two years of punitive pandemic restrictions give way to cost-of-living crisis

European Council president Charles Michel and president of Commission Ursula von der Leyen at the end of first day at the Special European Summit on Ukraine at the European Council in Brussels on Monday where leaders agreed to ban most Russian oil imports. Photograph: EPA

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Jennifer Bray
Tue May 31 2022 - 07:05

You could forgive Irish people for feeling like they can’t catch a break: two years of punitive pandemic restrictions have given way to a cost-of-living crisis which is hitting everything from food to fuel. The price of the staycation has sky-rocketed and for those looking to save a dime and bag a cheap break abroad this summer, they have to get through the obstacle course that is currently Dublin Airport.

Sinn Féin have once again ramped up the pressure on the Government and will this evening bring a motion to the Dáil on the cost of food. The party will say that more people are becoming reliant on food banks and that similar increases in the cost of petrol and home heating oil are heaping pressure on families.

They will call on the Government to implement a new cost-of-living payment for those on incomes up to €60,000.

Sinn Féin say that if they were sitting around the Cabinet table they would provide €200 for every adult with an income less than €30,000 and €100 for every adult with an income between €30,000 and €60,000.

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Ministers have been asked multiple times over the last few weeks what extra measures the Government might be considering above and beyond the €2 billion in cost of living measures already announced.

The Government line is that the next relief package will come in the form of Budget 2023 – but it’s a long away with an entire summer of discontent stretching out before Ministers. The pressure to go above and beyond will not abate as the Opposition continues to call for a mini-budget. The next step in Government’s approach s to release the summer economic statement in the coming weeks which will set out the amount of money available for the Budget.

As Cormac McQuinn reports today, there is still plenty of cash left in the emergency contingency fund.

“After €1.5 billion in spending commitments related to Covid-19 and measures to help with the cost-of-living there is now €2.5 billion left in the €4 billion contingency fund announced in last year’s Budget,” he reports.

Meanwhile Jack Horgan Jones has the latest on the mega queues at Dublin Airport. He reports how just days ago, politicians on the Oireachtas Committee on Transport were more or less told the matter was in hand. That front page piece also details how the DAA could face “financial penalties” for the hold-ups - but not until 2023.

EU summit day two

Food security won’t just be a big topic in the Dáil today, it will also be a major focus on day two of the EU leaders summit in Brussels. Taoiseach Micheál Martin said yesterday evening that the global situation around food security is a “big worry”. He said there were “increasing warnings” that “we could be facing very serious issues around famine and food security towards the latter end of the year.”

French president Emmanuel Macron and German chancellor Olaf Scholz discussed the issue with Russian president Vladimir Putin last weekend. Macron said that in order to avoid a food crisis, Putin needs to lift the blockade of Odessa and allow the export of Ukrainian grain via the Black Sea. Unsurprisingly, Putin appears to have made such a move contingent on the lifting sanctions.

Progress on that sixth sanctions package looked slow on Monday, despite the fact it has been four weeks since European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen announced the plans at the European Parliament. Then late last night, EU council president Charles Michel tweeted that the European Union had reached a deal to ban the import of Russian oil, as Naomi O’Leary reports.

EU leaders have agreed to cut 90% of oil imports from Russia by the end of this year, European Commission chief Ursula von der Leyen has said. Video: Reuters

Hungarian opposition was the biggest obstacle. Earlier in the day, prime minister Viktor Orban said there was no consensus among EU leaders on banning Russian oil but he appeared to signal that he was ready to agree if the bloc guaranteed his country still received the fuel via a pipeline and other measures in case that avenue is disrupted.

Meanwhile, Taoiseach Micheál Martin will return from Brussels later on Tuesday and Cabinet will be held around 5.30pm, where Ministers will be updated on the summit and on the latest situation around energy, food and sanctions.

Here’s Pat Leahy’s report from Brussels on everything from Brexit to the Taoiseach’s thought’s on Russian sanctions.

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Playbook

Dáil Eireann

Leaders’ Questions has its usual slot at 2pm led by Sinn Féin, The Labour Party, People Before Profit-Solidarity and the Independent Group. Taoiseach Micheál Martin will return from the Brussels summit later in the day, so there are no questions scheduled for him today as would normally be the case on a Tuesday.

The Electoral Reform Bill 2022 will be mentioned before Government Business at 4:05pm with statements on transport. Expect to hear plenty during this session, and most certainly beforehand, about the lengthy queues at Dublin Airport which have led to more than 1,000 missed flights. At 6:30pm, Sinn Féin have a Private Members’ Business slot where they will discuss rising food prices. Topical Issues are up at 10pm and the Dáil adjourns at 10:48pm.

You can find the full schedule here.

Seanad

Commencement matters are up at midday followed by the Order of Business at 1pm. At 2:15pm Government Business is scheduled looking at the regulation of providers of building works. At 6pm the Online Safety and Media Regulation Bill 2022 is up. This legislation will see a new body set up to regulate broadcasters and online streaming services and a new office to oversee safety on the internet. The Seanad adjourns at 9pm.

The full agenda can be found here.

Committees

Many of the committees are in private session today, but at 11am the Joint Committee on Environment and Climate Action Engagement will meet to discuss the challenge and opportunity for local authorities in climate action.

At 3pm the Joint Committee on Justice will meet to examine the operation of the coroner’s service with professor Denis Cusack, Steven Smyrl and Nicola Morris as well as representatives from Irish Council for Civil Liberties.

At 3:15pm, the Joint Committee on Foreign Affairs and Defence will discuss the ongoing situation in Ukraine with the Ukrainian Ambassador.

At 4pm, the Select Committee on Housing will hold its committee stage consideration of the Electoral Reform Bill 2022. Minister of State Malcolm Noonan will appear.

The full agenda can be found here.