asked the Taoiseach if he will state the estimated purchasing power of the £1 at (a) 1st March, 1957, and (b) the latest convenient date, using 1938 as the base year.
Ceisteanna—Questions. Oral Answers. - Purchasing Power of £1.
It is estimated, on the basis of the present Consumer Price Index and the previous cost-of-living index numbers, that the quantum of goods and services which could have been bought retail for £1 in mid-February and mid-November, 1957, would have cost 8/- and 7/8 respectively in 1938. Mid-February is the nearest date to 1st March for which the information requested is available.
Is the position that as between mid-February, 1957, and mid-November, 1957, the purchasing power has decreased by 4d?
The cost in mid-February was 8/- and the cost in mid-November, 7/8.