Sir, The Irish newspaper industry, has been complaining to the Minister about the artificially low price of some UK papers in Ireland. Others complain about the high price of some UK magazines in Ireland.
The Minister, Mr Richard Bruton, and Mr Pat Rabbitte do not trust the free market and have decided to interfere in the magazine industry. They have made an order reducing the price of UK magazines in Ireland.
This order is unworkable. Even if it succeeds, it will only result in a very marginal three per cent reduction in the price. The customer won't notice it.
If the Minister wants to reduce the price of magazines in Ireland all he has to do is reduce the amount of VAT he is charging on them - 21 per cent. The Minister's 21 per cent VAT is the major cause of high magazine prices.
The Minister should stop scapegoating distributors. His way is going to cause expense and confusion in the industry, but it will not help, the consumer. The magazine business is highly competitive, with plenty of choice for the buyer. If the UK publishers thought the Irish distributors were char in too much, they would soon, step in.
The publishers do not need the Minister to fig ht their battles for them. There is no one getting rich from selling or distributing magazines in Ireland. Yours, etc.
(newsagent),
Upper George's Street,
Dun Laoghaire,
Co Dublin.
PS. How can the Minister deal with all the anomalies?. For instance the Financial Times is 70p in the UK, yet in Ireland, it is 95p; the Irish Sunday World, which is £1 in Ireland, is only 75p in the UK. If magazines were cheaper all newsagents know they would sell more, but a reduction of the 21 per cent VAT is the only sensible way.