Drinks licensing laws: A major overhaul of the drinks licensing laws is recommended in the report, including the abolition of many restrictions on opening pubs.
Ireland is the most expensive country in the EU for alcoholic and non-alcoholic drinks, the report finds.
"Several factors contribute to this - excise duty and VAT in particular - but the restrictions on market entry imposed by the liquor licensing laws inhibit competition and result in higher prices."
To reduce overcharging in the pub and drinks sector, the report recommends abolishing the limit on the number of pub licences awarded.
It says new forms of licences, such as cafes, should be introduced to cater for changing consumer tastes; Minister for Justice Michael McDowell recently announced his intention to make this reform.
The Department of the Environment should ensure that planning is not used as a barrier to new entrants in the pub and drinks trade, the report says.
With Irish transport prices the second-highest in the euro zone, the CSG says the Department of Transport has a conflict of interest, in that it acts as both regulator and owner of most bus and train services.
These roles should be separated to provide the consumer with greater choice, the report says, and the remit of the Aviation Authority should be broadened to include taxis, buses and other forms of consumer transport.
The report also calls for an increase to €3,000 in the maximum award in the Small Claims Court, and says all Government decisions should be consumer-proofed.
It wants doctors to be "incentivised" to prescribe generic drugs where appropriate, as these are much cheaper.
In other EU countries, pharmacists may substitute a generic product when a branded one is prescribed, yet this is not the case in Ireland, the report points out.
The group recommends a change in the current methodology for setting manufacturers' drug prices.
On planning, local authorities should be obliged to demonstrate how consumer needs have been taken into account when dealing with retail and other services.
The report also calls for a review to be carried out in three years of the effectiveness of the Irish Financial Services Regulatory Authority in protecting the interests of consumers.
