Paul Coghlan (Fine Gael)

I welcome the Minister of State to the House. He is a well-meaning man but he is on a sticky wicket today.

I was glad to hear the Minister of State refer to recent comments. Sadly for him, comments about Government charges constituting a large proportion of the increases identified in the Forfás report are true. I welcome the fact, however, that the Minister of State recognises the problems inflation is causing for businesses across the State. The days of the economic boom are sadly gone and we are slipping in the competitiveness rankings.

The private sector wants the Government inflation monkey off its back. I wish the Minister of State well in the measures he is putting in place to tackle it, but this is an appalling situation. The National Competitiveness Council has identified the Government contribution to the inflation figure as the largest single factor driving high prices. It contributes between five and six times the share of the inflation figure compared to other EU governments. Across the European Union, the average government contribution to inflation figures is 0.4% while in Ireland stealth taxes and increases in charges add more than 2% to the figure. The private sector is hamstrung by these charges and consumers are being made to pay the increased prices. If Government increases were removed, Irish inflation would be below the EU average.

The Government increases are undermining our competitiveness on a daily basis and the slide must be halted. Those increases have had a major impact on jobs. Each week since the Government entered office, 600 people have been added to the live register and each day we hear of more job losses, the causes of which can be traced back to reckless inflationary Government policy. None of the factors that brought about a reduction in inflation stemmed from Government action. Any fall in the costs of goods or mortgages has only served to highlight the stark contrasts with the impact created by the Government. The CSO has confirmed that the contribution to the May inflation rate by the Government is over 60% of the entire increase. Increases in indirect taxes alone account for almost 40% of the rise in inflation over the past 12 months.