Joan Burton (Dublin West, Labour)

Does the Minister, as a distinguished senior counsel, know much about the psychology of shopping? I will tell him a little about what happens when one looks at the prices of jackets and dresses in the British multiples on Grafton Street. Although sterling and the euro are very close, one can pay up to 40% more because the differences in sterling are not being passed on, particularly by the high street chains and the large grocery multiples such as Tesco. They can talk all they like about price reductions but the women of Ireland know that the price reductions are not being passed on.

Would the Minister ever go shopping? Would he take his Cabinet colleagues with him shopping? Would he say to people in Ireland, and get RTE to follow him and broadcast it on the "Six One News", that there are many products in the Republic to which no VAT applies and still we are paying more for them than we are paying for them in the North of Ireland where VAT is actually applied on a wider basis? In order to instill some confidence and encourage people to go back out shopping for value, could he crack the whip?

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