Irish are second richest in EU

The wealth gap between the old and new EU member states is narrowing but Luxembourg and Ireland are still the wealthiest countries in the bloc.

Portugal has fallen behind three of the new members — Cyprus, Slovenia and the Czech Republic — in wealth per person.

Estonia, Lithuania, Latvia and the Czech Republic experienced the biggest growth in their gross domestic product, per capita, in the EU 25 between 2003 and 2005.

But they are still below the EU average wealth per person figures, which put Cyprus as the wealthiest new EU member states, with its citizens enjoying 83% of the EU average ‘purchasing power’.

Slovenians have 80%, the Czech’s 73% and Estonia 57% of that level of spending power.

To make up for huge differences in prices across the EU, the figures pit GDP per capita against the buying power of money in various EU’s member states The result is a realistic picture of the states’ comparable wealth.

At the bottom of the scale, Latvia’s citizens have 47% of the EU average. Poland has increased it’s citizens’ relative wealth, since joining the EU, from 46% of that average to 50%.

Luxembourg increased its lead growing from 215% of the average, in 2003, to 248% last year.

Ireland is 40% over the average and the EU’s second richest country according to the Eurostat statistics.

In Ireland, the GDP figures that form the basis of the survey are inflated with money from multi-nationals, while Luxembourg’s GDP is inflated because far more people work in Luxembourg than live there.

Other results were: Denmark 124%, Austria, the Netherlands and Belgium 123%, Britain 118% (down 3%) Italy 103% (down 4%), Germany and France 10%.