Nash demands Dáil debate on grocery price gouging
- Calls on CCPC to investigate price gouging in the retail sector
Intervening during the Dáil Order of Business today, Labour finance and enterprise spokesperson expressed his amazement at the cynical move by many grocery retailers to suddenly reduce the price of food following Labour’s call for an investigation into potential price gouging.
Deputy Nash said:
“The cost of a grocery shop is extortionate right now. The Government must facilitate a debate in the Dáil to get to the bottom of what is at play in the retail sector now and I reiterate my call to Government – it must now commit to working with the CCPC to stamp out ‘greedflation’ once and for all.
“The ECB said very clearly a couple of weeks ago that one of the predominant reasons why inflation remains so high is because of rapid levels of profit-taking by large corporations. The reality is that far too many big corporations, like major supermarket chains, are involved in obtaining supernormal and hyper normal profits. They are effectively profit taking and that is increasing the strain on the economy.
“It is the ordinary punters across Ireland who are paying the price for that at the till in terms of higher prices for bread, high prices for milk, high prices for eggs, products that are actually produced here. I put it to the Taoiseach today that this is simply unacceptable. We are experiencing extraordinary circumstances at the moment, we need to see action from Government and the CCPC.”