Price freeze

I refer to the article Price Freeze Not On The Cards (September 26). The request for a price freeze was not an original one. According to a Maltese language Sunday newspaper dated September 29, France adopted a price freeze from September 11 to March 2002. France's changeover to the euro took place on January 2 2002. Our doubts on safeguards were directed more towards the answer we received to the request for a price freeze, that constituted bodies were voluntarily acting together to curb any attempts at price abuses related to the euro by rounding off, incorrect exchange rate in dual pricing, or any other means.

Having said that, the Ghaqda tal-Konsumaturi (consumers association) still maintains that the compiling by the government of a master price data base, especially of essential items, would have been an added safeguard to protect consumers. Also the association did not agree with some of the articles in L.N. 4 of 2007 which enabled revocation of fines related to abuses in dual pricing. This deterrent was an added safeguard for consumers.

When dual pricing was introduced, The Times reported that 52 outlets had been found by NECC to be showing incorrect dual pricing. It would also be interesting to consumers to find out what happened to the trader whose case was published in The Times and who was fined Lm500 for repeatedly ignoring the warnings given to him regarding incorrect dual pricing.

Regarding the failure of the Ghaqda tal-Konsumaturi to apply to take part in a price-monitoring exercise, Parliamentary Secretary Tonio Fenech should realise that much against our wishes, it is not always possible for a voluntary association to take part in projects like this due to lack of human resources, even when they are fully funded by the government or the European Commission. But we are doing what we can by taking part in NECC.  

Had we got to know about it sooner, we would have liked to copy the system adopted by the Slovenian Consumer Association which after funding from the government, employed and paid university students to effect a price monitoring exercise before Slovenia introduced the euro.

As regards the comment that our involvement would have given consumers more confidence, this could act as a double edged blade. If anything went wrong in the introduction of the euro, somebody would be bound to express surprise that this happened and ask why the association did not speak up when it was taking part.