The Organisation for Economic Co-Operation and Development has warned the Irish government that it must arrest energy cost increases to avoid damaging inflation to its wider economy, the Irish Independent has reported.
The Organisation for Economic Co-Operation and Development (OECD), an international organization that advises governments on economics matters, has told the Irish government that it needs to create measures that improve competition in its domestic energy sector in order to safeguard the economy.
The organization said that the Irish rate of inflation was above the EU average and that the main driver for this was high gas and electricity prices. The Irish government has recently been heavily criticised for allowing Bord Gais to increase prices by 34% and the ESB by 20%.
Boosting competition in network industries, especially in the electricity and natural gas sectors, is becoming a matter of urgency as these sectors contribute disproportionately to inflation, the OECD stated.