Irish inflation rising faster than rest of EU

Seven of top ten price increases are in Government sectors

Today's CPI figures show that Ireland's inflation rate is once again rising faster than the rest of EU,' Fine Gael Deputy Leader and Finance Spokesman Richard Bruton TD said today (Thursday).

Not alone is Ireland still the most expensive country in Europe, it is accelerating away from the rest and this Government is leading the way in pushing up prices. Seven of the top ten price movers in the past twelve months are in separate Government administered prices:

• Natural Gas 35.4
• Refuse Charges 21.4
• Electricity 13.5
• Hospital Charges 11.8
• Health Insurance 11.7
• Primary Education 8.6
• Secondary Education 8.3

When you compare Ireland's performance in sectors regulated by, or run by Governments across the EU, the figures show the Irish Government is imposing more than double the rate of price increase, with prices rising a full 4 percentage points faster than in the rest of the EU.

Government Administered Price Increases (%) in past twelve months

	Housing and Utilities	Health	Education	Communications
Ireland	10.7	6.6	6.8	-0.4
EU	5.5	1.6	2.6	-2.5
Difference	5.2	4.0	4.2	2.1

This price shock comes in the same week that Government Revenue figures show they will collect ?1,100 more per household than they promised at Budget time. The message to the Government is very clear: it should stop regarding consumers as a soft target for price rises and stealth taxes.

The Government must get its own house in order in terms of pricing policies, which are typically six times the rate of inflation in the rest of the economy. This is creating huge pressure for consumers who rightly feel they are being ripped off. It is also building up serious cost problems for our exporters, who are currently experiencing their worst year since 1974.

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