Economy minister Solbes blames public for inflation.

On Monday , Pedro Solbes, said that the Spanish public "has not come to terms with the value of the euro," which he partly blames for the rise in the inter-annual inflation rate to 4.1%.

"We still don't know that 20 cents is worth 32 Pesetas and that one euro is worth 166 Pesetas," said Mr Solbes. This seems an odd thing to say, as I have found it is best not to refer back to your previous currency, my 81 year old mother-in-law took less than a year to appreciate that her pension is calculated in euros, and that she buys things in euros, so there is no need to refer back to her previous currency.

He then added that this can be seen in the size of tips people leave in restaurants, which, he said, can be as much as 50%. Another strange thing to say, as I have found it very rare for any Spanish person to leave a tip, let alone one as much as 50%.

There are lots of instances where you will come across both the euro and the Pesetas. On tills in shops, but this maybe because the old tills were modified for the euro, there are lots of times that house prices are worked out in Pesetas, to the Spanish 1,000,000 Pesetas has more appeal than 60,250€ and I believe this practice will go on for many more years to come.

A note to economy minister, Pedro Solbes. It was the average Spanish person that elected this government and to blame them for inflation may come back to haunt you.