Ireland: How will energy crisis hit the economy?

Ireland's government this week moved to support people who are starting to feel the economic hit from the Iran war. Taxes on petrol and diesel were cut and there was an extra €150 benefit for around 470,000 of the poorest households. The package came to just under €250m, a modest amount compared to the estimated €12bn in supports given during the last energy crisis. Ministers were emphasising the targeted nature of the latest help while leaving the door open to more support should the situation get worse. "To put it bluntly, nobody knows what the situation will be in a month from now," the Taoiseach (Prime Minister) Micheál Martin said, "We must remain flexible in our response." Martin added that Ireland's economy enters the crisis from a position of "relative strength". The country is continuing to enjoy a windfall from US technology and pharma companies who pay much of their global taxes in Ireland. This has allowed the government to run a budget surplus which gives it more capacity to support households and businesses. Official data suggests the country's domestic economy grew by almost 5% in 2025, with the number of people in work reaching a record high. That performance is unl