Fine Gael has claimed it will name and shame retailers and professionals on a new website if they rip off their customers by charging above the odds. Arthur Beesley, Political Reporter, reports.
The party is targeting consumers by launching a website to highlight the increasing cost of day-to-day life.
Asserting that shops were marking up wholesale prices by 50 per cent, the party said it would use the site at www.ripoff.ie to urge the public to inform it by e-mail about unreasonable prices.
Fine Gael's enterprise spokesman, Mr Phil Hogan, said retailers and professionals would be "named and shamed" if the facts presented stood up. This could happen in the first six months of the year, he suggested.
The Fine Gael leader, Mr Enda Kenny, denied it was a gimmick but acknowledged that on its own it could do little but encourage people to engage in the political debate. Mr Kenny said he had heard countless stories of people being "fleeced" on everything from the price of coffee to getting their car insured.
The first pages on the site highlight the cost of motor insurance. Mr Hogan said the cost of financial services in the future and the prices of non-alcoholic drinks in bars would be highlighted.
