The Taoiseach, the Tánaiste and the leader of the independents in Government, Minister of State Seán Canney, will meet tonight to sign off on fuel supports to tackle massive inflation being experienced since the beginning of the US war on Iran.
Work on the promised measures have been ongoing for days, and the package will include a cut to excise duty on petrol and diesel at the pumps and also to agricultural diesel.
Hauliers will also benefit from the excise cut and a possible change to the diesel rebate scheme.
An extension to the fuel allowance scheme, which pays recipients €38 a week, is also expected, as is some adjustment to the price of home heating oil.
Prior to the leaders meeting tonight, Minister for Transport and Energy Darragh O' Brien will meet with Míchéal Martin and Simon Harris to discuss the plans.
That meeting will take place in Government Buildings in the afternoon.
Minister O’Brien has been in ongoing contact with the Irish Road Haulage Association as the measures are being finalised.
Minister Canney told RTÉ’s The Week in Politics yesterday that the measures will be "effective and will help people" but have to be carefully analysed in light of the changing situation with the conflict in the Middle East.
He said: "The agenda could be completely changed. We have different utterances coming from the US on this.
"I think it's important that what we are doing right now is evaluating what has happened in the last number of weeks and bringing in measures for that.
We have to do the analysis of the different scenarios and how it might affect Ireland going forward. The Department of Finance are doing that analysis at the moment."
Mr Canney said he hoped things did not get to a stage where fuel had to be rationed at the pumps.
"I remember the last time that happened, it was a terrible time for everybody. We would hope that it won't happen, that it won't end up like that.
"That is why we need to make sure that we continue the dialogue, the de-escalation of the conflict and try and get some sort of stability back into the world economic stage. That's the important thing," he added.
Petrol, diesel home heating oil prices soar
For more than two weeks the price of petrol, diesel and home heating oil has increased substantially.
Home heating oil rose from around €500 for 500 litres to close to €900 this weekend.
Diesel prices rose from around €1.80 per litre to between €2.20 and €2.30 at the weekend. Petrol also rose steeply to around the €2 mark.
Opposition parties will be closely watching how much relief householders, commuters and hauliers get and have accused the Government of dithering over the introduction of the measures.
Mayo Sinn Féin TD Rose Conway Walsh said there was already a cost-of-living crisis before fuel prices started to rise.
She said: "We tabled legislation during the week that would take 25c off a litre of petrol and diesel, it would take 10c off 'green' diesel and it would also reduce home heating oil by €183 per 1000 litres.
"That needs to be done immediately. There also need to be measures in place for businesses."
Over the weekend, People Before Profit-Solidarity held their annual conference.
Co-leader Richard Boyd Barrett told RTÉ This Week that the Middle East conflict is affecting Ireland and the energy price hikes are coming on top of a pre-existing cost-of-living crisis.
He said he would welcome meaningful impacts on energy prices.
He said: "They have dilly dallied for weeks while this has been impacting on people… pressure on them to act has resulted in possible action."
Mr Boyd Barrett also called for price caps to be introduced to control costs.
"We think there should be price controls.. where you actually hold prices for energy, electricity, gas and so on, at levels that are affordable," he said.
He said controls could come in for groceries, fuel and rents too.
