Dublin MEP Lynn Boylan criticised the government’s failure to tackle the cost-of-living crisis following alarming new data revealing a massive spike in household electricity arrears.
The data for March 2026 exposes worrying trends:
· The figures show that there are 318,735 households in arrears. That’s the most since December 2025. The second most since the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
· A month-on-month increase since February of 1,897
· A year-on-year increase of 21,141 compared to March last year.
· A new high of €511 owed on average per household in arrears
Lynn Boylan said:
“The financial burden has never been heavier with the average debt hitting a worrying new high of €511 per household.
“The latest figures show that energy debt has surged to its second-highest level since before the Ukraine War, surpassed only by the bleak peak of December 2025.
“The government is looking the other way while bills continue to push people to the brink.
“All that households have gotten is the axing of the energy credits and the establishment of a government taskforce to come up with proposals. Where is the urgency?
“Meanwhile, the government has announced policy measure after policy measure to roll out the red carpet for data centres.
“The government is continuing to plough ahead even though a recent report showed data centres were driving up the cost of electricity for households.
“We need to end the hands-off approach. The government must step in to help protect families from spiralling energy debts.”
