The Irish government has recently expressed its intention to remove 1 and 2 cent euro coins from circulation within the country. This decision has sparked debate across the Eurozone but has already been adopted by five other European countries: Finland, Denmark, the Netherlands, Sweden, and Belgium.
This move is primarily driven by the production cost of these coins, which exceeds their face value (1.65 cents to produce a 1 cent coin). As a result, the Irish government believes that manufacturing these coins creates a significant deficit at the EU level and is proposing that prices be rounded to the nearest 5 cents.
However, it’s important to note that this decision is not yet official. For it to be legally valid, it must be approved by all Eurozone countries, which is far from certain. Governments that have stopped using 1 and 2 cent coins have only reached informal agreements with their populations, without any legal enactment.
That said, this proposal has stirred controversy: some Eurozone countries warn it could be an inflationary measure. Stay tuned in the coming weeks! It’s possible that you may not be able to use 1 and 2 cent euro coins during your next trip to Ireland!
