Summary of ideas submitted in the Retail category…

• Device needs to be created that would enable the user to change light bulbs when standing on the ground.
• Drop VAT rate to 15%. (Repeated idea)
• Education: Up skill the unemployed
• Encourage small industry/retail specialist business to set up in idle premises.
• Equate UK and Euro prices.
• Expansion of “Order and Collect” Centres, If the “order and collect” centres allowed for a local combined account for online purchasing, this would allow for bulkier deliveries to one addrees, thus reducing the postage costs for individual items purchased
• Extend pub opening hours.
• One pharmacist could work from 12pm to 12.55pm in one pharmacy, from 1pm to 1.55pm in a second and from 2pm to 3pm in a third, provided the premises were in close proximity
• Get retailers to lower their prices compared to sterling prices
• Get rid of copper coins.
• Give an option to employees to take shopping vouchers in Ireland taxed at lower tax bracket.
• Government action to drive down rents and abolish upwards only rent reviews.
• Government action to stimulate retail motor business by reducing VAT rates on cars.
• Government should drop the sales tax requirement for a few days.
• Government should have guaranteed bank lending to small cash starved retail business at €10,000.00 per employee.
• Have 3 tax bands.
• Have the top 20 most common grocery products in Ireland available cheaper than any retailer can provide and make them available through a ‘ drive through’ pick up by the shopper.
• Higher taxes on cigarettes and alcohol are needed.
• How about introducing a once off tax/stamp duty on the purchase of all new mobile phones?
• If there was a website set up so that retailers could flag price increases to an agency i.e. national consumer agency, so that unusual and unaccounted price increases could be investigated quickly.
• If businesses generate more than say €50,000.00 in their 1st year then the Government should refund them the cost of having their website designed.
• Impose higher taxes on older cars.
• Improve customer service.
• Increase income tax but reduce VAT by a significant amount to promote spending.
• Income tax relief should be in place for spending on major items and services.
• Increase non-taxed gift vouchers to employees to €1,000 to encourage spending.
• Increase the price of a packet of cigarettes by €2.
• Insurance and rents on business premises should be controlled to encourage business start ups.
• Introduce a reduced VAT rate for specific pre-paid services and specific goods to stimulate spending.
• Introduce legislation that is biased against non indigenous retailers.
• Introduce a 50 cent levy on all beers sold in cans.
• Introductory rents should be capped for the first 2-3 years of the business opening.
• Irish retailers must compete with online prices.
• Irish supermarkets and shops should have sections with the Irish products flagged.
• Job sharing and reduced contracts should be introduced to allow people to stay in their jobs.
• Just tax every text message by 1c. (Repeated idea).