Charlie McCreevy, Reacted to price complaints
The Minister for Finance has said that the public should shop around in search of better value in the aftermath of the euro changeover. Charlie McCreevy was reacting to a complaint by the Consumers' Association that prices have risen dramatically since 1 January.
He said that he would have been greatly surprised if every retailer in the country had scrupulously and fairly co-operated with the changeover from the punt to the euro. However, Mr McCreevy said that he was advising consumers to shop around and make their own mind up on retailers who are ripping them off.
Mr McCreevy rejected suggestions that a price freeze before the euro changeover would have avoided the problem that has now arisen. The Consumers' Association today criticised the Government over the way it handled the changeover to the euro. The Association said that it had evidence that a number of businesses and services used the opportunity of the changeover to increase prices.
The chairman of the Association, Michael Kilcoyne, said that he was disappointed the Minister for Consumer Affairs had not imposed a price freeze during the changeover period.
