A Galway County Councillor has been convicted of failing to display prices in the supermarket he owns.

Progressive Democrats Councillor Thomas Welby was convicted at Galway District Court last Tuesday, 8 April, of failure to indicate the selling price of a two-litre container of milk and the unit price of fresh cream at the Gala store he owns in Oughterard, as required under European law.

Speaking to the Galway Independent after the decision, Cllr Welby said he felt that the legislation was "finicky".

"I think the legislation is very draconian and it's going to cause a situation that a lot of small shopkeepers will have to get a lot of expensive equipment. It's going to put them under huge costs. I feel it's a bit of legislation that no shopkeeper will ever be 100 per cent compliant with."

Although Cllr Welby was charged with 21 separate counts of failure to display information, Judge Mary Fahy fined him €300 in respect of just two of the offences, related to the selling price of milk and the unit price of fresh cream, taking the other 19 charges into account. Costs of €1,500 and witness expenses of €250 were also awarded.

Commenting on the court outcome, the Chief Executive of the National Consumer Agency, Ms Ann Fitzgerald said, "It is not acceptable for traders to adopt a haphazard approach towards price display. Consumers have a right to this information. The new enforcement powers available to the agency under the Consumer Protection Act 2007 will help to ensure better compliance throughout the retail sector."

Ms Fitzgerald advised that the new measures include, in addition to prosecution, the power to issue fixed payment notices (on the spot fines) in respect of breaches of price display legislation. The Act also provides for the establishment of a Consumer Protection List and enables the Agency to 'name and shame' traders who breach consumer laws. Ms Fitzgerald said the Agency would avail of the various enforcement options where required. "As CEO of the National Consumer Agency, I will maximise the use of these enforcement tools to deliver better protection to consumers."

"The retail sector should correctly display their prices without the need for regular monitoring by the Agency," she said. She indicated that the NCA is working closely with the sector to help achieve voluntary compliance. "However, if retailers ignore their responsibilities, I will have no hesitation in taking appropriate action to ensure that consumers obtain easy access to pricing information - which is their legal right," she said.

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