Simon Coveney (Cork South Central, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I acknowledge the ECB reports that have come out. The Government, of course, acknowledges the pressures families are under. This is why we have been proactive in limiting the fallout from higher rates of inflation. A total of €12 billion, some 4.5% of national income, has now been provided in direct relief to absorb some of the impacts and ease the burden of inflation on households and families. The Government believes, especially for vital products such as staple foods, where reduced input costs come through to product prices, that consumers should benefit from this. This is why the Minister of State, Deputy Richmond, chaired a special meeting of the retail forum yesterday and will have another such meeting in six weeks' time. The Government has given a clear signal to business leaders in the retail sector that we are not happy and that we expect to see the reduction in the cost of production passed on to consumers in terms of pricing. We also expect to see primary producers protected in that context.

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