A Fianna Fáil TD has said Independent Ireland’s economic policies are like a child asking for every sweet in the shop. 

The Government has extended cuts in excise duty on petrol and diesel, amid continuing turmoil in the Middle East. 

Instead of lapsing on 1st September, they are due to be phased out between November and February, at a cost of €407 million to the exchequer. 

On The Claire Byrne Show, Fianna Fail TD for Carlow/Kilkenny Peter Chap Cleere said the Government has been “agile” in its approach to the issue of fuel costs. 

“It always said it would be flexible,” he said. 

“And I absolutely think it's the right thing to do for the Government to come back today to give that certainty to people right across the country.

“It's not an insignificant amount of money; it's plus €400 million extra, which brings the total spend on the excise duty pot to €1.5 billion.”

However, Independent Ireland TD for Limerick County Richard O'Donoghue believes the Government should devise a policy that automatically caps the amount of tax people pay at the pump when prices rise internationally. 

“When fuel goes up one cent, they put another cent in taxes,” he said. 

“So it's 50 cent minimum cost to the person when fuel goes up; so, it's not only fuel going up, it's taxing going up. 

“Let's put a cap on taxation of fuel; so, when fuel reaches a certain amount like 1.70, there is no more tax, but we pay the increased cost on the fuel.” 

Filling a car with fuel petrol gasoline in County Donegal, Ireland. Picture by: Alamy.com.

The proposal was swiflty rejected by Deputy Cleere, who argued that the Government “cannot write a blank cheque”, adding that to do so would be “reckless for the public finances”. 

“If diesel prices do go to €3 euro, which public services are you going to cut?” he asked. 

“Which playgrounds do you want to close down? Which libraries are you going to do? How many less guards do you want in the street? 

“Because you're going to write a blank cheque and this is baby infant economics; Independent Ireland's economic policy is like a young child going to the shop with €20 in the pocket and saying, ‘I want every single sweet that's on the back of the shelf there’, eating every single one of them and waking up in the morning with a pained stomach and a pained head and nobody left.

“That's your policy, it's not done anywhere across Europe.”

Main image: A child asking for sweets. Picture by: Alamy.com.