Prices soar like in ’84

Charlie Haughey was just restarting his political career, the IRA had bombed Brighton, Dunnes workers were protesting against apartheid… and I had just done my Leaving Cert.

Yep, 1984 was an awfully long time ago. And it was also the last time prices soared the way they are now.

And even back then I can’t imagine anything as brutal as the €700 hike in energy bills unleashed this week by Bord Gais on 730,000 customers.

The official inflation forecast on which Finance Minister Paschal Donohoe based his Budget is just 2.2%.

Yet after a series of savage energy price increases, inflation is now forecast to hit a whopping 7-8% for the first time in 38 years.

But back in 1984, Labour minister Barry Desmond raised pensions and social welfare payments by 7% – and the whole social welfare budget by 13% – despite being in a far worse financial situation than we find ourselves in now.

I’m surprised Labour hasn’t picked up on that fact yet when excoriating Mr Donohoe for not helping us out a bit more in the face of soaring prices.