Runaway prices are worrying households as the Government refuses to include a cost-of-living package in the next Budget, the Sinn Féin leader has said.
The price of a litre of milk is now higher than the price of a litre of petrol, and parents are finding it difficult to put a meal on the table for their children, Mary Lou McDonald said.
She told the Dáil that the Government is out of touch and believes things really are not that bad, but they are.
She listed examples of people struggling to buy food, adding that the kick in the teeth is the Government telling them they would not help.
"You intend to throw working families under the bus," Ms McDonald said.
The Taoiseach rejected Sinn Fein's assertion that the Government does not get it.
Micheál Martin said there are threats facing the economy which the Sinn Féin Leader seems "oblivious to".
He cited the free school books scheme, free school meals and increases to carer's allowance as examples of Government interventions to help people.
He accepted that food prices are high, but he stated that it was also important to invest in people's future.
The country is back to pre-famine levels of population, and there must be investment in infrastructure, Mr Martin said.
"In the forthcoming Budget, the Government will respond to those most in need," the Taoiseach pledged.
Earlier, Sinn Féin Spokesperson on Finance Pearse Doherty said that cost-of-living measures needed to be included in Budget 2026.
His remarks came after the Minister for Public Expenditure Jack Chambers said one-off cost-of-living measures would not be included in this year's Budget.
However, Mr Doherty said the Government needs to deliver a cost-of-living Budget, saying the Taoiseach, Tánaiste and other ministers "believe the cost-of-living crisis is over and it's not".
Watch: Pearse Doherty says energy credit 'have to be part of this year's Budget'
He said the Government "doesn't understand the overall pressure that is on families".
"If you take energy, for example, of course any reduction in VAT and energy is welcome," he said, adding "it needs to be extended, but it’s not enough".
"There are 400,000 people in this State that are behind, either in their electricity bill or in their gas bill," he said.
"That’s increasing," Mr Doherty said, adding it "needs to be dealt with".
He added: "Therefore, energy credits have to be part of this year's Budget."
"Families are feeling the pressure and the Government needs to get with it," he said.
"They need to deliver a cost-of-living Budget," he added.
Mr Doherty said the Taoiseach was using US President Donald Trump as a reason why there will be no cost-of-living package in the Budget.
"If Donald Trump came up this morning and tweeted saying that there's going to be no tariffs, the Taoiseach still wouldn't deliver a cost-of-living budget," he said.
"This is a policy decision from the Government," he added.
Mr Doherty said the State would still record "a surplus of €6 billion" if the a cost-of-living budget was provided this year with one-off measures.
"We can do this, we can afford this," he said.
"The question is why is the Government is leaving so many families high and dry?" he added.
Govt's Housing policies 'bewildering to certifiable'
Labour leader Ivana Bacik accused the Government of introducing policies on housing ranging from "bewildering to certifiable" which were failing the people of Ireland.
Speaking in the Dáil, deputy Bacik said the Planning and Development Bill was described by the Cabinet as a "once in a generation" piece of legislation but now the Housing Minister was seeking to amend it before the legislation had even been fully enacted.
She said the end of term report on the Government's housing policy was "a clear fail."
In reply, the Taoiseach said the Government was "focused" and were "getting things done", but Labour had opposed any and every measure over the past 6 months.
He said the Government is maintaining public investment, while also creating conditions to facilitate far greater house building by involving the private sector.
Mr Martin said the number of first time buyers had been "steadily increasing" from 25% in 2015 to currently 40% due to schemes like Help To Buy.
Deputy Bacik said the Government continually sought to "deflect responsibility" from the housing crisis, adding that people were securing and then losing mortgage approvals as there were not enough homes for sale.
