Govt information campaign to help people conserve fuel

The Government is to bring forward an information campaign to assist people to conserve fuel during the energy crisis, according to the Minister for Transport Darragh O'Brien.

Mr O'Brien said the country’s oil supplies and reserves are robust, but the Government is not going to be complacent about it and is monitoring the situation on a daily basis.

"Obviously it’s important that people conserve energy as best they can," he said.

"We will be bringing forward a public information campaign in that regard to assist people, not to direct them, but many people are doing that already."
Speaking at the opening of the Banner Plaza in Co Clare, he said the Government has already provided significant support in reducing excise on diesel and petrol.

Minister O’Brien said the scale of the Government’s intervention is larger than any other European country.

"I think it’s important to know that our supplies are robust.

There’s no immediate supply issues whatsoever," he said.

"It is a very serious and severe crisis and one that we want to see end obviously, but we will do our level best to protect our citizens, to protect our economy and to protect our society."
'Maybe you could cycle to work, maybe you could walk,' suggests minister
This afternoon, Minister of State at the Department of Transport Sean Canney called on Irish people not to waste electricity and consider alternative methods of travel to work such as cycling or walking.

"Thankfully, we have reserves better than a lot of other countries in terms of fuel to keep us keep the economy going.

But I think what we need to do is we need to conserve energy.

We need to make sure that we are doing things in a smarter way.

Don't be wasting electricity.

"Remote working is in place already, and I think workers and employers need to see what's the best way to connect together, for the protection of our economy and to make sure that our supply chains can work and our manufacturing can continue, that we can actually function.

"And thankfully, our economy is in good position, though in saying that we do not know what is coming at us in the weeks and months ahead."
Read more: Rising prices drive up cost of commuting