Pat Rabbitte (Dublin South West, Labour)
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Question 50: To ask the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment the action he intends to take to address the concerns of small business owners following the significant drop in consumer sentiment in May 2006 as reported by the ESRI; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [23485/06]

Liz McManus (Wicklow, Labour)
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Question 56: To ask the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment if his attention has been drawn to the fact that the ESRI consumer sentiment index for May 2006 has dropped by almost 7 per cent compared to April 2006; the action he intends to take to prevent further drops in consumer sentiment; the further actions he intends to take to address the concerns of small businesses in view of this drop; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [23491/06]

Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 50 and 56 together.

The principal objective of the Consumer Sentiment Index is to record details on consumer attitudes towards trends in the economy. It, therefore, complements other data such as the value of personal consumption. In this respect consumer spending is still very strong with early CSO figures on the value of retail sales showing a 7.6% year-on-year growth for March of this year.

I should also point out that the Index attempts to measure the 'mood' of consumers, tracking it from month to month. It is not based on hard economic data. As such it is a volatile measurement and while the figure was higher in April, the May figure is, in fact, identical to the figure for March of this year. Accordingly, caution must be exercised in drawing conclusions from short-term movements in the index.

It is a primary objective of this Government to maintain and strengthen the competitiveness of the Irish economy. As stated in the new Partnership Agreement, improving competitiveness also means bringing more competition and a fair deal to consumers. Providing better consumer information and protection will empower consumers to achieve good value for money and help lower costs. The value of a pro-consumer agenda will be promoted in stronger terms as the National Consumer Agency strengthens its operations and as its mandate develops into consumer advocacy, research, information, enforcement, education and awareness. The Agency will, accordingly, become a forceful statutory advocate for consumer rights and will be empowered and resourced to promote the consumers' case with regulated industries and individual regulators. These actions should underpin consumer confidence going forward.

The Small Business Forum, that I established last Summer, has just completed a review of the key issues facing the small business sector. The Forum's report has presented me with a comprehensive set of proposals which were designed to enable the small business sector to achieve its full potential and to enhance the significant contribution which the sector already makes to the economic well-being of this country. I will be seeking to implement all the recommendations that fall within my Department's remit over the coming months and I am working closely with my Government colleagues to look at an implementation path for the remaining recommendations which do not fall within my area of responsibility.