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Southern shoppers in trolley fights and parking rage
Thursday, 11 December 2008
Parking rage and trolley fights have broken out among southern shoppers heading to Northern Ireland in pursuit of bargains.
Details of the increasingly feisty shopping trips were disclosed to TDs yesterday as sterling hit another record low against the euro, making the journey north even more attractive.
The pound yesterday weakened to 88.004 pence per euro, the lowest level since the single currency's debut in 1999. Sterling has slipped 16pc against the euro this year.
A Dail committee heard two women had engaged in a "punch up" in Newry over a shopping trolley that had just been emptied by another shopper into the boot of her car.
The PSNI were called to deal with what was described as a "pretty nasty row".
Unsavoury
And Sinn Fein Louth TD Arthur Morgan said that in another unsavoury case, two men were fighting over a parking space that had just become vacant.
"So there's no pleasure in shopping in the North. There won't be too many of them coming back," he said.
He was speaking at the Oireachtas finance committee which was voting on the Government's decision to increase the higher rate of VAT by 0.5pc to 21.5pc.
The VAT rate in Northern Ireland is just 15pc, due to budget cuts by the government, and prices for food, electrical goods and other items are up to 30pc less than in the Republic
Mr Morgan said the southern registered cars returning from their cross-border shopping trips were almost becoming a health and safety risk.
"The back of the car is almost trailing off the road such is the cargo they have, with food and a load of alcohol as well," he said.
Finance Minister Brian Lenihan said that while he had not called on people to do "their patriotic duty" by shopping at home, he had said that if they shopped locally, they would be assisting the exchequer.
He said that he had commissioned a study by the Central Statistics Office to discover just how much revenue was being lost due to cross-border shopping.
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Comments
24 Comments
There was a report in the Irish Independent just like this in the last week,here in the ROI, so Belfast Telegraph shouldn't be accused of biased reporting.If it happened (trolley fights),it happened.
Posted by Patrick | 14.12.08, 17:28 GMT
Why is the Belfast Telegraph getting attacked for reporting on this? Some people are claiming this is some sort of anti-Southern rhetoric when this is in fact simply a report on what is being discussed in both Dial and Oireachtas committee groups, so please stop being so ridiculous.
Sinn Fein's Arthur Morgan comes across as an idiot with his statement; 'So there's no pleasure in shopping in the North', really Arthur, well how bad must it really be south of the border if people are willing to fight over car parking spaces in the North?
Stop taking this article as an attack on Southerners, its not, you are always welcome in the North, what I'd say is don't limit yourselves to Newry, go on past the mayhem, 10 minutes up the road is Banridge, another fifteen you're in Sprucefield/Lisburn and ten more you arrive in Belfast!
The only thing worse than the British treating us Irish as idiots is our own politicians doing it, some Irish politicians really need to shut up!
Posted by Steven | 13.12.08, 21:10 GMT
its all about the cheapest way to feed your family and save money, if people were not getting riped off down south , they would buy down south. after all a lot of government contracts recently were awarded to n ireland companys , why , because the price was right ( no problem ) so lets cut out all the nonsense about being patririotic and buying in your country ( total nonsence ) anyone who can save money , good luck
Posted by hg | 12.12.08, 12:07 GMT
A non-story. Lazy journalism. Two people argue over a shopping trolley and this makes it into the BT. Says a lot about the news values of the BT.
Posted by Tommy | 12.12.08, 00:18 GMT
Another round of senseless bickering among the Irish. Two beautiful regions, and this nonsense continues...
Posted by Brian | 11.12.08, 21:14 GMT
I'm amazed at all these ROI politicians slamming Southerners for coming North to shop as being unpatriotic. Maybe they feel the same about all the NI residents who holiday in the Republic and add lots to their economy. Maybe we should all just stay at home in Northern Ireland.
Posted by Jonny | 11.12.08, 20:36 GMT
Pete, with the greatest respect, how is reporting the facts "antiSouthen"? There were numerous fights over car parking spaces and most of them happened to be Southerners.
I imagine the poor dears were tired out after the long journey and a hard day's shopping, but ti doesn't make this report "Terrible journalism".
Just because it ruffled your feathers doesn't make it untrue.
Posted by Centaur | 11.12.08, 20:11 GMT
Hey Pete, this anti-Southern nonsense is a report from the Dail (the Southern parliament) and the people talking this nonsense are TDs (MPs)
Posted by Peter | 11.12.08, 19:34 GMT
This is anti-Southern nonsense that gives the impression that those southerners are nothing but a bunch of crazy savages.
"Batten down the hatches boys the crazy southerners are coming!"
Terrible journalism. An old-school BT article. A whole nation of shoppers who are filling northern cash tills with thousands of euros and they are branded as savages by the actions of a couple of people. This sort of thing happens on a daily basis but isn't usually considered worth reporting. An argument over a parking space? Catch a grip.
Posted by Pete Tyler | 11.12.08, 18:03 GMT
All those holier than thou types who have so enviously attacked their arrogant materialist Anglo-American cousins
over recent decades, allegedly for political reasons,
will find out how it feels to be the targeted for being super rich.
They prove themselves morally bankrupt as well as culturally barbarous with such foul behaviour. Like Western leadership.
How their ancestors must be weeping and how their children
will suffer for their panting greed.
Still, do come and trash all the other unwanted terminal crop cement and steel monstrosities in our Province. PLEASE!
Posted by Sarita | 11.12.08, 17:28 GMT
The last refuge of patriotism is the shopping trolley.
Posted by George | 11.12.08, 15:33 GMT
I presume the point of this article was, using a couple of flimsy anecdotes, to present the "southern shopper" as some kind of different species observed to exhibit hysterical behaviour unknown to calm well-mannered northerners.
If the story helps in its own small way to fuel the anti-southern bias of many BT readers then the "journalist" who wrote it should be extra-happy.
Posted by Elijah, Larne | 11.12.08, 15:26 GMT
Funny how things change, I remember as a boy the highlight of the summer was a trip with train / boat ( with music ) to Omeath. Cigarettes, chocolate, cooked ham in abundance, Customs men searching us upon our return on the shore at Warrenpoint.
Posted by Thomas Watters | 11.12.08, 15:24 GMT
Well well well...seems citizens fromthe republic are voting with their feet as well as their purses! Perhaps rather than Conor Murphy arguing for a United Ireland in the next few years, we should perhaps be arguing for the Republic to be let back into the UK!! Food for thought!
Posted by Andrew | 11.12.08, 14:34 GMT
Oh dear, oh dear!!, well there must be some reason why people from the South are coming North.
Perhaps the Councils in N I should consider park and ride facilities over the coming months.
It is amazing all this fuss about queues and parking, did the same people making the comment ever drive past petrol stations on the border and consider the poor Northern people queueing for petrol.
Did the TD from Louth come out and persuade the Northerners to turn back!!!! The sound of silence is piercing!!!
Posted by Elizabeth | 11.12.08, 12:35 GMT
What he has failed to point out is where the shoppers were from. If they were all from the south, then surely it is a damning reflection on the people doing the shopping rather than the place in which they were shopping. Being a southener myself, it is disgusting to see a SF TD slander the likes of Newry for benefiting from the current situation whilst on the other claiming it would be better off being part of Ireland. He should just shut up and keep his anecdotal rumours to himself.
Posted by Steven | 11.12.08, 12:34 GMT
Caid mile failte Southern shoppers! Change trains in Belfast Central station and stay on for another half hour and you will find less busy shops in Bangor with the same prices and exchange rate. ;-)
Posted by Centaur | 11.12.08, 12:24 GMT
The transparent propaganda from M. Morgan is surely very close to libelous - I could imagine the kick up there'd be in the Dial if Peter Robinson advised people not to buy diesel in the South because they could damage their tyres on pot holes (I'm not for one minutes suggesting this is the case).
I'm loyal to the "half crown", I've always been salary and diesel in the South, all other purchases North, as an EU citizen I'm entitled to decide and the markets will find their own levels. A border economy on a small island has many benefits for all, you can't expect one way traffic all the time. I have spoken with many people from the Dublin area who have visted the North for the first time, and irrespective of the value they can't understand why they've never been before as they have a great time and will be back for more than the shopping. I'd also suggest many in the North do not apprecaite what the South and Dublin have to offer. All, broaden your horizons!
Posted by Andy | 11.12.08, 11:33 GMT
Like your thinking Mickey :-) Should take back Zimbabwe whilst at it and sort that mess out
Posted by soarer | 11.12.08, 11:17 GMT
Sounds like these guys are so keen to get into our wee country, they are prepared to spill blood!
Lets do a referendum on whether the ROI should indeed unite with NI....BUT on the basis that they join the UK.....
Posted by mickey | 11.12.08, 10:29 GMT
24 Comments