Barry Andrews (Dún Laoghaire, Fianna Fail)

As I was saying yesterday, I believe stronger enforcement measures need to be included in the Bill to enable the Competition Authority to engage in more criminal prosecutions in the types of cases in question. It is extremely difficult for a supplier to take a case itself because it would naturally upset its relations with retailers. This is a very serious problem.

The consumer strategy group has said there is a very strong need to radicalise the consumer. That is pushing an open door because every consumer is naturally sceptical about prices and fears being ripped off. It is easy enough to feed into this fear, if not to abuse it. The Hobbs factor over the summer was an example of this. It was a penalty kick and showed that some prices were higher than others, thus trying to prove there is a general pattern by considering specific examples. This is entirely unscientific and normally belongs in the realm of light entertainment rather than in the realm of public discourse, yet it managed to grab the attention of the nation. Having said that, I feel Eddie Hobbs was unfairly vilified at the time by a particular magazine. Nothing has come of the various allegations that were made against him and I do not expect anything will.

We failed to make the point that wages in Ireland have galloped ahead of price increases over the past seven or eight years. Examples of consumers being ripped off can be found but they do not point to a general pattern. Ultimately, the market will correct any imbalances. The example of alcohol is used widely but the inflation of alcohol prices in the rest of the European Union is far in advance of that in the Irish market. This proves there is no general pattern of being ripped off. We have a very open economy and naturally we will import inflation. Energy prices serve as a classic example. All energy prices are increasing and consequently people are noting increases in their electricity and gas bills. This is a consequence of our living in an open economy. Being in an open economy has many benefits but there are also downsides.

The Government has done much to try deal with the issue of increasing prices. The one issue that stood out for me during the last general election campaign was that of insurance costs. Many young people raised it with me and other Deputies. We have tackled it and prices have decreased to 1998 levels in some cases. This is to the credit of the Government. A consumer regulator is proposed to try improve consumer knowledge and this is to be welcomed. The general success of the economy ensures people can afford to pay for products. The fact that wage increases are ahead of price inflation proves this. The best comparison with other European countries can be made using the harmonised consumer price index. On utilising this measure one will note that Ireland matches the EU norm in terms of price increases. This is also to the credit of the Government.

The Bill should provide for stronger enforcement and investigative powers. Some mechanism should be created to make it easier for a supplier to take a case against a retailer. Perhaps an anonymity clause should be stitched into the Bill so a protest or allegation could be made at an early stage without one having to reveal the source of one's information.

We need to take advantage of technology in controlling prices. It was suggested that there should be an Internet portal for comparing prices, particularly in the grocery sector. We need to specify in the Bill bans on certain activities for which suppliers are called on to pay. I have been informed of examples of suppliers being expected to pay for golf outings, putting products on shelves, foreign study tours and promotion. Those practices, if they are found to exist, should be specified and banned in the Bill. I hope amendments can be made in that regard. I support the Bill.

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