Mr. Tony Keohane:

It is not just wage costs. Wages are a significant element, but there are others, for example, insurance costs. It is clearly understood, well debated and accepted that input costs in Ireland for retailers, manufacturers and suppliers are higher than they are elsewhere. The broad understanding is that these translate into a 15% differential in retail prices between North and South. This is an average. Last week, the differential in the fresh food area was approximately 10%. A foreign exchange movement can affect the figure. It is accepted that the difference in costs feeds into a price differential of approximately 15% between our economy and that of our neighbour.