ISME PRESS RELEASE
INFLATION
ISME CONCERNED AT SHARP RISE IN INFLATION

Local charges, energy, transport, wages and waste costs continue to strangle
smaller companies.

Cost competitiveness key to future economic growth.

ISME calls for scrapping of National Pay Agreements on foot of minimum wage
reduction.
ISME, Thursday 20th January 2011.
ISME, the Irish Small & Medium Enterprises Association, has expressed concern at the
sharp rise in inflation in December, up to 1.3% from 0.6% in the previous month. The
Association fears that the general trend in price increases will further undermine cost
competitiveness, restricting the ability of smaller companies to trade. The Association warned
that unless the cost of key business inputs, including, local charges, energy, transport, wages
and waste costs are urgently tackled, more companies would close and further jobs would be
lost.
“With inflation taking a substantial hike in the last month, mainly due to increases in transport
costs, the fear is that the costs of doing business will continue to increase, threatening business
and trade. The business sector is already being faced with exorbitant state influenced costs,
which continue to strangle smaller companies, any further increases will be catastrophic,”
outlined ISME Chief Executive, Mark Fielding.
“With the exception of the decision to reduce the minimum wage, little or no effort has been
made to address cost competitiveness, which makes a nonsense of the so called business
focused recovery policy announced in the Government’s National Recovery Programme. The
recent increases in fuel costs, with the promise of more to come in the form of Carbon taxes,
makes a mockery of this Administration’s commitment to restoring costs competitiveness. The
facts remain that the Government has done little to alleviate the high cost environment for
business and are missing an opportunity to regain lost competitiveness.”
The new Administration must recognise the plight of the SME business sector and immediately
take action to address the excessive cost environment in which these companies operate. Among
the measures that need to be addressed, include:
 A 10% reduction on all local charges on businesses for 2011.
 The scrapping of national pay agreements, including JLCs and REAs, especially as
the minimum wage has been reduced.
 Every effort should be made to increase the level of competition in the energy
sector to stimulate price competition.
 The decision to introduce a carbon tax should be reversed as a matter of urgency.
ENDS
For further information contact:
Mark Fielding
Chief Executive
Tel: 01 6622755
087 2519675
Jim Curran
Head of Research
Tel: 086 2640469
Note to Editors:
ISME is the only independent voice of Small & Medium business in Ireland, representing in excess
of 8,500 members across all sectors. The Association is owned and run by owner managers and is
independent of big business, government and unions; the TRUE voice of the Irish SME.
www.isme.ie