Bertie Ahern, Government to study Forfás report
The Taoiseach has told the Dáil that the Government will study the Forfás report on the cost of living in detail, and take whatever action it can to increase competition for the benefit of consumers.
The new report has not yet been published but today's Irish Times reveals that by February of this year, Ireland had become the second most expensive country to live in in the Euro zone, second only to Finland.
This compares to 1999 when Ireland was only the fourth most expensive country in the European union.
The authors of the Forfás report give a number of reasons for the rise in the cost of living.
They say that the economic boom, inflation and higher indirect taxes are all factors - they also highlight lack of competition in the areas of the service industry
As well as measuring the cost of living, the Forfás report also looked for evidence of profiteering during the period of the euro changeover.
The report found no evidence of a general rise in prices but did point the finger at particular areas including medical care and dentistry, eating out, hairdressing and package holidays.
Fine Gael leader Enda Kenny said the Government had taken its eye off the ball, and that inflation was now the most serious problem in the economy.
Labour's Ruairí Quinn suggested the government should have introduced price control in the run-up to the changeover to the euro.
The Taoiseach said that inflationary pressures in the economy were inevitable given recent economic growth.
