Joan Burton (Dublin West, Labour)
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Question 169: To ask the Tánaiste and Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment the steps she has taken and each of the measures she has introduced in the past three months to ensure that retail outlets and other businesses importing products priced in sterling are passing on to consumers to the fullest extent possible the benefits of the weaker sterling exchange rate; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [46943/08]

Mary Coughlan (Donegal South West, Fianna Fail)
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I have previously advised the House of the Government's concerns in relation to the importance of retailers passing on to consumers the benefits of the Euro's appreciation in value against Sterling. Given widespread concerns that consumers were not enjoying these benefits in terms of the prices that they pay for goods, particularly goods sourced in the UK, I initiated an engagement with the retail sector in June of this year as to the reasons why the benefits of the Euro's appreciation were not being passed on to consumers. In the course of that engagement I met with IBEC and leading members of Retail Ireland, and also wrote to major individual retailers to express the Government's concern on this matter.

By way of response, retailers advised that while the retail price of goods imported from the UK had lagged exchange rate movements due to factors such as the forward purchase of goods and currency, there had already been reductions in the price of some goods and further reductions were in the pipeline. In this regard, I would acknowledge that since my initial engagement with the sector in June, there has been some reduction in prices and the Deputy will be aware of the price campaigns of the various retailers, which has helped to some degree in the ongoing reduction in the annual inflation figure.

Notwithstanding these welcome price reductions, concerns still remain in relation to the differential in prices between the north and south. Retailers have contended that one of the main reasons for this price differential is that the cost of doing business in Ireland is significantly higher than that in the UK. To that end, in September of this year, I requested Forfás to carry out an analysis of the relative cost of doing business in a number of locations in the Republic, Northern Ireland and the UK. I expect to receive Forfás' analysis of its findings on this matter very shortly. I recently met again with the retail sector to discuss some of Forfás' preliminary findings and to reiterate the Government's concerns in relation to the level of the differential in prices between the north and the south.

It is my strong view that where there are significant differentials in consumer prices and retailers have a duty to their customers and to the economies in which they operate to explain why there are such differentials. It is my intention to continue to pursue this matter with the retail sector.