The government has been urged to look into methods in an attempt to alleviate increases in the cost of living. With particular focus on energy spending and consumption costs, the country faces severe financial pressure due to the recent hikes in fertiliser and feedstuffs. This comes as the European Central Bank (ECB) has revealed the latest data indicating that inflation in Ireland for the period of December 2021 was at 5.7%, while rural households saw the increase at 6.3%.
According to the Irish Farmers’ Association (IFA) Farm Business and Credit Chair, Rose Mary McDonagh it’s very concerning that inflation is gone so high and that it is impacting farm households and families. It’s understood that the number of people working in a remote rural setting has increased as more people have left cities to work from home.
McDonagh says any rural household, especially the farmers, will use more heat and transport than the urban dweller. In a rural setting there would be a higher amount of fuel and energy use, as farms tend to have a higher consumption rate. She comments that people in rural settings are feeling the inflation pinch.
ECB’s Reamonn Lydon says monetary policies such as increased interest rates are unlikely to help the situation, as they are a tool typically used to deal with demand issues.
LSL News.