Inflation Rate
Dail Éireann — 2025-12-18
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Simon Harris (FG), Wicklow

I accept that cost-of-living pressures are real for people. This House regularly debates what the different policy proposals to address that should be. In my Department's projections, which are obviously provided independent of the political system, inflation was estimated to average 1.8% in the autumn forecasting round. Between January and November, it has averaged 2%. On the forecasting provided by my Department in respect of budget 2026, which was delivered in October, the forecast is actually at the outer end of the forecasts of a number of other agencies and organisations. The Central Bank was predicting 1.4%. The European Commission was projecting 1.9%. I read the ESRI report, but I also listened carefully to the ESRI's commentary on the radio this morning. Wages are outpacing prices, although I accept that this is happening from a very challenging position in light of the level of inflation we have experienced and the level of real impact people have experienced with the cost of goods and services over a sustained period. That is why we can debate the budget package, as we often do.

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Record URI: https://data.oireachtas.ie/akn/ie/debateRecord/dail/2025-12-18/debate/main
Retrieved: 2026-08-14T04:54:29+00:00
Sitting date: 2025-12-18