Government to send ‘clear message’ supermarket prices must fall faster, Varadkar says

The Government will tell retailers and supermarkets that prices should fall at a meeting with them on Wednesday, Taoiseach Leo Varadkar has said. Mr Varadkar said prices had started to come down but “not enough”.

Minister of State at the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment Neale Richmond is due to meet with the forum to discuss concerns over high food prices on Wednesday as well as food producers on Thursday.

“He [Mr Richmond] will be passing on a very clear message from Government,” Mr Varadkar said during Leaders’ Questions in the Dáil on Tuesday.

“When input prices like energy costs went up, retailers increased their prices, that’s understandable. Your input costs go up, you have to pass on some of that increase to your customers.

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“But when input costs go down, we expect you to pass on those reductions to your customers and we’re making that very clear to retailers, to the big supermarkets, to shops and also to the energy and gas companies.

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“You put prices up when your costs went up, now your costs are coming down – we expect you to bring down prices. We’re starting to see a bit of that but not enough of that.”

The Taoiseach was responding to Sinn Féin leader Mary Lou McDonald who said the cost-of-living crisis was “out of control” and that people’s finances were “pushed to the very brink”.

“They’re hammered by sky-high energy bills, soaring food bills, runaway rents, mortgage interest rate hikes and a cost-of-living crisis that is hitting them from all sides,” Ms McDonald said.

“Almost a quarter of household gas customers found themselves in arrears in the first three months of this year and, as energy credits run out, the number in electricity arrears is increasing again.”

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Ms McDonald said inflation in Irish supermarkets was “the highest ever recorded” with shoppers set to see their annual grocery bills rise by €1,200.

“That’s a very big sum and people’s incomes just won’t stretch that far in many cases,” she said. “Many people are going hungry, pensioners are skipping meals and, with the school holidays now fast approaching, some families don’t know how they will feed their children this summer.”

Mr Varadkar said inflation was slowing down but that prices remained high with many families struggling with bills. He said the Government was also confident there would be a “real increase” in incomes this year and that “most people will be better off” in terms of income.

Mr Richmond later said he would be seeking assurances from the retail sector that as input costs go down, reductions would be passed on to customers.

The Dublin-Rathdown TD also said price caps were “not a policy that will work here”.

“It is a policy that failed in London, and I think the sooner it is disregarded by some...the better,” he said.

Sinn Féin put forward a motion on Tuesday evening calling on the Government to “take action on sky-high food and grocery bills”, which the Government did not oppose.