Cuts in fuel excise duty will be allowed to expire at the end of February, the Minister for the Environment has indicated.

The Government cut the duty in March by 20c per litre on petrol and 15c on diesel as the war in Ukraine drove prices to record levels at forecourts around the country.

Initially due to expire in August, the measure was extended to the end of February next year, as part of the cost-of-living budget presented by the Government in September. The move has cost the Government around €600m.

Environment Minister and Green Party leader Eamon Ryan says the Government has been helped by the fact that the price of oil, and therefore transport fuels, has "significantly reduced".

"In the last few months, you've gone into the forecourt [and] the price was up at €2.10 to €2.15, a litre. Now... it's €1.60 €1.70, whatever," he said.

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"So it's dropped dramatically." Mr Ryan said it is important the Government maintains "an appropriate economic approach' to the cost-of-living crisis, so that it can 'afford measures that we have to take".

"In that economic approach, you can't just rely on corporate tax because that's not appealing," the minister said.

The State has seen record corporate tax receipts this year, with the Government being able to put away up to €6bn over the next two years in a rainy-day fund, as a result of this unprecedented windfall.

However, there is wariness within the Department of Finance to be seen as relying too heavily on corporate tax receipts, as they are often unreliable and inconsistent.

Excise duty, by comparison, is seen as a more stable tax to generate consistent returns every year.

Mr Ryan added: "We do need excise duties and the likes of those do give us a very broad base.

"So we will have to look at that and see which ones can be or will be reintroduced. I expect a number of them will have to be because we have to make sure that the money for social welfare, education and other budget needs [is maintained].

"One of the things that may help us is [that] we agreed last week to a further measure to help the haulage industry, with an €18m scheme... targeted at the smaller haulage operators, and that will kick in around March.

"So if there is - which I expect there will be - a return of VAT, excise and other levies, it will be compensated for by that measure." Government figures have repeatedly said that the matter will be reviewed in 2023, closer to the time when the cut in the excise duty is due to end.

Pressure on the Government to maintain the excise duty cut is expected from opposition figures, and from its own back benches. While there isn't an expectation that petrol and diesel prices will rise above €2 again in the short to medium term, any government that effectively endorses an increase of petrol and diesel will face a backlash from the public.

Mr Ryan's comments are the first to firmly indicate that the Government may be minded to allow the cut to expire and to allow the rate to return to its original level.

Speaking at the time when the measure was implemented, the then Minister for Finance, Paschal Donohoe, said: "It is important that we are clear - the Government is acting now with this excise measure, to respond to the price rises we have seen to date."

He added: "But also in anticipation of the further price rises we expect to see over the short and medium term."