Labour demands explanations behind soaring cost of living
Labour yesterday urged the government to explain Malta’s rising cost of living as the Retail Price Index over the last year soared by almost 5%, ranking among the highest among EU member states.
This compares very badly with the eurozone countries where inflation remained stable between January and July at around 1.7%, excluding the impact of oil and food prices, whereas Malta’s soared from 2.8% to 4.3% in the same period.
“The government is conveniently hiding behind the international prcies of food and fuel, but it keeps avoiding the question as to why their impact is felt more here, with the consequence that our inflation rate is among the highest in the EU and in the eurozone,” said the MLP speaker on finances, Charles Mangion.
“Government has to explain why this is so, as even when one eliminates the impact of food and fuel the inflation rate remains among the highest.”
He added that considering that wages increases were among the lowest in the EU, Maltese families are ending up with lesser purchasing power.
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