Dáil Éireann debate -
Wednesday, 25 Jun 1980

Vol. 322 No. 10

Written Answers. - Consumer Price Index.

268.

Mrs. J. Burke

asked the Taoiseach the actual and percentage change in each item included in the consumer price index at mid-May 1977, 1978, 1979 and 1980 or the nearest convenient date.

The Taoiseach

The actual and percentage changes between mid-May 1977, mid-May 1978, mid-May 1979 and mid-May 1980, respectively, for the item headings distinguished in the consumer price index are given in the following tables. The actual price changes are available only for those items where the identical varieties and quantities are priced in all areas and meaningful national average prices can be calculated.

Consumer Price Index Items	Unit	Actual Price Changes
Mid-May 1977 to Mid-May 1978	Mid-May 1978 to Mid-May 1979	Mid-May 1979 to Mid-May 1980
		p	p	p
Beef
Round steak	lb.	+18.8	+23.5	+6.9
Sirloin	lb.	+22.7	+27.8	+9.6
Sirloin roast	lb.	+17.7	+24.9	+9.5
Rib steak	lb.	+9.6	+13.3	+0.7
Brisket corned beef	lb.	+9.4	+14.4	+0.7
Mutton:
Leg (whole)	lb.	+12.7	+29.0	+9.3
Loin chops	lb.	+18.7	+36.7	+9.2
Cutlets (rib chops)	lb.	+13.9	+35.1	+11.1
Gigot chops	lb.	+13.9	+33.9	+6.6
Neck	lb.	+3.7	+10.5	–0.7
Liver	lb.	+10.6	+11.8	+4.6
Pork:
Leg (whole)	lb.	+8.0	+7.6	+4.1
Loin chops	lb.	+14.7	+10.6	+7.8
Shoulder (whole)	lb.	+7.8	+1.9	+6.1
Steak	lb.	+19.6	+21.9	+19.8
Bacon:
Best back rashers	lb.	+13.4	+8.3	+10.4
Streaky rashers	lb.	+4.4	+2.5	–0.9
Ham, uncooked	lb.	+4.9	+10.7	+2.9
Shoulder (whole)	lb.	+4.9	+2.8	+1.8
Ham, cooked	lb.	+16.4	+23.7	+14.9
Sausages, pork	lb.	+5.0	+4.6	+4.2
Black pudding	lb.	+4.6	+4.0	+4.3
Fish:
Whiting, fillets	lb.	+9.8	+9.1	+1.9
Cod cutlets	lb.	+8.7	+10.4	+7.3
Plaice, fillets	lb.	+13.4	+15.2	+7.3
Kippers	lb.	+13.9	+10.6	+8.4
Fresh Vegetables:
Potatoes*	3½ lbs.	–17.6	+23.3	–4.0
Tomatoes*	lb.	+5.2	+4.4	+7.8
Onions	lb.	–5.9	+2.8	+4.5
Carrots	lb.	–7.3	+11.1	+1.9
Cabbage (med. size)	head	–2.5	+6.4	—
Bread:
White, sliced	800 grams.	+2.7	+4.1	+6.9
White, unsliced	800 grams.	+2.9	+4.2	+6.8
Flour:
White, plain	2 kgs.	+4.6	+10.3	+4.7
White, self-raising	2 kgs.	+4.3	+10.0	+4.3
Milk:	pint	—	+3.5	+1.5
Cheese:
Processed	½lb.	+5.0	+4.4	+4.0
Natural	lb.	+10.4	+13.0	+8.3
Eggs grade 4*	doz.	+0.2	+2.3	+11.2
Butter (creamery)	lb.	+0.9	+14.3	–4.5
Margarine	½lb.	–0.5	+0.8	+0.9
Tea:
Best quality	¼lb.	+9.5	–0.2	+0.8
Medium quality	¼lb.	+8.6	–0.5	—
Sugar	1 kg.	+6.6	+3.1	+2.9

* Not seasonally adjusted.

Percentage Price Changes between mid-May 1977, mid-May 1978, mid-May 1979 and mid-May 1980.

	Percentage Price Changes
Consumer Price Index Items	Mid-May 1977 to Mid-May 1978	Mid-May 1978 to Mid-May 1979	Mid-May 1979 to Mid-May 1980
Food:	%	%	%
Beef	+14.8	+16.5	+3.1
Mutton and lamb	+15.0	+25.0	+ 3.6
Pork	+12.9	+9.2	+7.7
Bacon	+10.5	+8.0	+4.1
Poultry	+8.5	+8.2	+17.6
Cooked meat	+10.9	+13.4	+12.1
Sausages	+11.2	+7.3	+6.6
Black pudding	+12.1	+9.6	+8.1
Fresh fish	+16.1	+12.0	+7.5
Frozen fish	+17.8	+5.5	+16.9
Dried and cured fish	+14.6	+7.9	+12.6
Tinned fish	+2.5	+3.0	+8.9
Potatoes*	—62.2	+164.9	—10.7
Tomatoes*	+14.4	+8.5	+10.1
Other fresh vegetables	—19.4	+48.5	+4.8
Dried vegetables	+13.8	+7.4	+13.2
Tinned vegetables	+5.6	+8.4	+7.9
Frozen vegetables	+3.8	+9.5	+14.7
Bread	+12.5	+16.1	+23.1
Flour	+11.1	+21.0	+8.6
Biscuits	+13.1	+8.5	+5.5
Cakes	+13.5	+8.5	+13.9
Fresh milk	—	+43.8	+13.5
Other milk products	+9.7	+9.8	+14.1
Cheese	+15.1	+11.4	+8.0
Eggs*	+2.4	+3.8	+17.6
Butter	+1.8	+26.8	—6.7
Margarine	—1.5	+5.7	+6.3
Other fats and oils	+3.0	+6.1	+4.1
Fresh fruit	+19.0	+5.5	+12.5
Tinned fruit	+9.6	+3.5	+6.6
Dried fruit	+4.0	+13.1	+17.0
Tea	+48.2	—4.9	+0.3
Coffee	+20.6	—7.0	+8.6
Cocoa	+73.6	+2.6	+7.9
Sugar	+16.7	+10.3	+9.0
Breakfast cereals	+10.5	+9.6	+14.5
Oatmeal	+23.0	+7.7	+5.6
Other cereals	+12.6	+12.1	+11.1
Jelly	+6.1	+4.7	+7.3
Custard	+11.6	+10.1	+10.4
Sauces and meat extract	+10.6	+5.6	+12.9
Soups	+15.7	+13.6	+11.5
Jams and marmalade	+12.1	+8.9	+16.9
Sweets and chocolate	+12.7	+10.7	+15.6
Ice cream	+7.6	+6.9	+12.9
Baby food	+11.5	+11.8	+12.3
Other food items	+14.9	+3.8	+13.7
Soft drinks	+8.6	+12.6	+25.8
Meals out	+13.1	+13.0	+22.3
Alcoholic Drink:
Beer	+5.5	+14.7	+24.8
Spirits	+3.8	+15.8	+30.0
Wine	+3.2	+11.0	+31.6
Tobacco:
Cigarettes	+4.0	+16.1	+26.9
Cigars	+5.8	+9.1	+16.6
Tobacco	+5.5	+12.7	+25.0
Clothing and Footwear:
Men's outerwear:
Overcoats	+9.8	+4.7	+13.9
Waterproofs	+11.0	+7.9	+16.6
Suits	+11.6	+9.1	+11.5
Other outerwear	+14.1	+8.6	+12.6
Men's underwear:
Shirts	+16.1	+10.5	+19.0
Other underwear	+18.8	+8.2	+15.3
Women's outerwear:
Overcoats	+9.2	+7.5	+15.6
Waterproofs	+14.1	+5.7	+15.8
Costumes and suits	+11.9	+7.8	+13.9
Skirts, slacks and shorts	+12.1	+10.0	+18.6
Dresses	+12.3	+6.7	+14.6
Other outerwear	+12.3	+8.4	+12.8
Women's underwear:
Vests	+18.8	+10.5	+22.6
Panties	+31.1	+9.5	+16.3
Slips	+18.4	+14.4	+17.4
Other underwear	+12.0	+11.4	+17.2
Children's clothing:
Boys' outerwear	+11.6	+7.8	+15.2
Girls' Outerwear	+11.1	+7.3	+13.3
Boys' underwear	+15.2	+9.1	+13.5
Girls' underwear	+10.3	+10.5	+13.4
Hose	+10.5	+9.9	+19.2
Other clothing	+12.9	+9.2	+15.0
Material and haberdashery	+11.4	+7.2	+16.7
Footwear:
Men's	+14.7	+9.7	+17.1
Women's	+11.6	+8.4	+16.6
Children's	+8.3	+8.9	+20.2
Fuel and Light:
Firelighters	+10.6	+6.6	+30.2
Coal	+12.9	+4.6	+31.0
Turf and briquettes	+11.6	+10.0	+21.4
Paraffin oil	+2.2	+10.5	+40.5
Bottled gas	+2.9	+6.3	+52.2
Piped gas	+5.8	+18.3	+88.8
Electricity	—6.3	—	+57.9
Fuel oil	—5.6	+14.0	+74.2
Housing:
Rents	—10.5	+11.4	+18.4
Rates and water charges	—100.0	—	—
Mortgage interest	+3.9	+31.6	+17.0
House insurance	+11.6	+9.1	+25.4
Repairs and decorations	+6.0	+6.9	+25.4
Household Durables:
Furniture	+10.6	+9.2	+16.9
Acoustic appliances	+6.9	+4.2	+7.6
Other electric/gas appliances	+11.1	+6.8	+19.4
Electrical repairs and spares	+8.1	+7.4	+21.5
Other furnishings and appliances	+10.2	+7.2	+14.0
Other ironmongery and hardware	+11.9	+7.8	+16.1
Floor coverings	+10.5	+11.6	+15.3
Soft furnishings	+9.5	+10.2	+15.0
Crockery and glassware	+9.4	+8.8	+14.4
Cutlery	+6.8	+6.0	+15.8
Kitchen utensils	+13.4	+12.1	+13.4
Household brushes	+11.8	+7.6	+16.7
Other household durables	+5.4	+9.9	+14.7
Other Goods:
Domestic non-durables:
Household soap	+11.4	+5.9	+20.4
Detergent powder/liquid	+9.5	+9.1	+19.1
Other cleaning material	+11.6	+8.8	+22.7
Other domestic non-durables	+13.3	+2.9	+20.6
Personal non-durables:
Toilet and having soaps	+10.1	+5.5	+15.3
Toothpaste	+11.6	+6.8	+19.8
Hair applications	+9.0	+7.3	+16.6
Cosmetics	+10.1	+8.6	+20.2
Toilet accessories	+10.7	+7.6	+14.7
Personal goods	+9.9	+7.5	+11.6
Sporting goods	+13.7	+9.9	+14.4
Toys	+7.9	+9.6	+20.7
Paper goods	+11.4	+8.1	+17.8
Stationery equipment	+12.6	+5.8	+18.8
Comics	+2.9	+20.2	+29.2
Magazines and journals	+12.0	+7.0	+29.7
Newspapers	+8.6	+8.6	+12.5
Textbooks	+8.5	+10.4	+14.1
Records, tapes, etc.	+7.8	+8.4	+13.2
Photographic goods and services	+4.6	+5.8	+19.0
Transport:
Motor cycles	+1.5	+16.4	+3.2
Motor cars	+10.6	+14.6	+7.5
Other vehicles	+11.2	+14.1	+23.4
Road tax	—87.9	—	+75.1
Motor insurance	+24.9	+7.9	+23.9
Petrol	—5.2	+7.6	53.4
Motor oil	+2.5	+6.2	+34.0
Spare parts	+11.1	+7.6	+22.5
Repairs and maintenance	+13.2	+13.2	+19.3
Other vehicles costs	+3.6	+10.2	+39.1
Bus fares	+18.7	—	+42.7
Train fares	+17.1	+0.5	+40.9
Other travel	+9.0	+13.7	+20.3
Services and Related Expenditure:
Cinema and theatre	+13.7	+13.8	+19.7
Dancing	+25.9	+14.8	+19.6
Other entertainment	+31.3	+16.1	+24.0
Education and training	+15.9	+12.5	+17.7
Doctors, dentists and opticians fees	+15.2	+13.7	+17.7
Medicines and drugs	+13.9	+7.5	+15.3
Hospital charges	+18.4	—36.8	+30.0
Other medical expenses	+13.8	+9.7	+20.1
Hairdressing	+15.0	+14.0	+27.0
Shoe repairs	+15.4	+15.7	+21.9
Laundry and dry-cleaning	+14.7	+10.2	+30.5
Other services	+11.7	+18.2	+32.6
Postage	—0.6	—	+19.8
Telephones and telegrams	+1.4	—	+18.9
Subscriptions to Clubs and Societies	+15.0	+15.3	+18.0
Trade Union, etc. subscriptions	+2.0	+7.7	+5.9
TV and aerial rental	+2.1	+4.5	+8.6
Licences	—	+18.9	+3.5
Hotel and Guest House charges	+45.3	+18.4	+25.7
Expenditure abroad	+14.0	+15.3	+32.7
Other expenditure	+8.2	+6.4	+21.3

* Seasonally adjusted.