Fine Gael ministers have continued to defend their call for €1,000 tax cuts in the Budget despite days of criticism from the party's coalition partners, Fianna Fáil.
Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment Simon Coveney said that people who "work hard every day" deserve to get a reduction in tax, at a time when the economy can afford it.
Mr Coveney said a newspaper piece by three Fine Gael junior ministers was "essentially outlining Fine Gael policy" that has been there for years.
He said: "Just because we're in coalition Government with other parties, doesn't mean that all of the parties are the same."
One of the Fine Gael Ministers for State who penned the controversial article in the Irish Independent also defended his decision to write the piece.
Fine Gael TD and Minister of State Martin Heydon told RTÉ's Today with Claire Byrne programme: "We believe this is a very healthy debate to have."
He said the three ministers came up with the idea for the article to articulate their key priorities for spending with a surplus "coming down the line".
He said the Taoiseach was aware of the article and was fine with it. "He didn't stop us."
But Fianna Fáil TD Willie O'Dea has described the article as " an obvious ploy" and accused Fine Gael of trying to "create an impression" that any tax reduction will be solely down to the party.
He said it is usual for people to set out publicly what they want in the run up to the Budget but not until the summer economic statement is issued by the Government in July.
But he also criticised Fianna Fáil's leadership for its handling of the matter.
He said it would have been better for both Minister for Finance Michael McGrath and Tánaiste Micheál Martin to play it down instead of a reaction that has "reinforced a false impression that Fine Gael is the only party interested in reducing tax on the hard pressed taxpayers".
Social Democrats TD for Wicklow Jennifer Whitmore said the article was a "vote getting exercise" and focused on Fine Gael talking to its voter base.
She accused the party of seeing these tax revenues as "a slush fund for their own political party purposes. And that is not the way we should be talking about, how we are going to actually spend the surplus that we have.
"This surplus is precarious and we have been consistently told that it's not guaranteed and we are going to have to be fiscally prudent with it."
She said what Fine Gael is proposing is the opposite of this.
Ms Whitmore said a full Dáil debate needs to happen on where this money should be used, saying it is not something to gain votes with.
Additional reporting Conor Kane
