Compassion a priority

THE INDEX numbers published by the CSO summarise price rises quite well, but for a measure of austerity, convert them into real money.

From January 2009 to September 2011, petrol prices increased by 56% and the price of home heating fuel went up by 66%. Only 21 months ago, it cost €45 for a full tank of petrol. Now it costs €70. A full tank of home heating fuel used to cost €480. A refill now costs €795.

I reckon that if you had an annual income of €40,000 in 2010, it has been slashed by €2,160 for 2011. In effect, our Government has devalued the Irish euro by 5.4% in the last year. The annual bill for road tax has not gone up since January 2009, but it is still a shock when it arrives.