According to Leo Varadkar, families and businesses will require financial assistance over the winter because energy costs are not decreasing quickly enough to safeguard people.

The budget is anticipated to feature a combination of general and specific initiatives to assist people with growing prices and more money will also be invested in home renovations and the installation of solar panels to make homes more affordable to heat.

Varadkar said: "I think it's pretty obvious that people will need help with their energy bills this winter coming and the details will be in the Budget.

"Our expectation is that electricity and gas prices will fall, but they won't fall enough or fast enough between now and next winter for us to say that there is no longer a case for support.”

Energy credits are the "easy option," according to Varadkar, because "you can just take it off the bill, it applies to everyone," even though the government has not yet made a final decision on how the payments would be handled.

However, as with earlier efforts, there was a targeted component, too, as Varadkar said. "I know there will be a desire to do a bit more in helping people with their energy efficiency," he predicted.

He praised the "pretty good going" that has already been done in retrofitting between 30,000 and 40,000 homes this year and urged others to apply for funding for solar electricity.

The proceeds from the windfall tax on energy corporations, according to the Taoiseach, would be used to pay for any additional aid or one-time payments.