#Cost of living

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#Cost of living

Articles and features relating to the increasing cost of living in Ireland

A COMPREHENSIVE SERIES OF ARTICLES ON THIS TOPIC

<p>The CCPC said while food prices had increased significantly in recent years in Ireland, 'there is no evidence that competition is not working in the Irish grocery retail sector'. File picture</p>

news

No evidence of price gouging in supermarkets, says consumer watchdog

It comes as households are still feeling the pinch to a much greater extent at the grocery tills, as new figures showed the cost of food is still rising at almost three times the rate of general inflation

<p> The Social Welfare Offices on Thomas St, Dublin.</p>

news

Over €157m in welfare overpayments identified last year

<p>Sean McGovern, aged 6, at the launch of the Barnardos Back to School Survey 2025. Picture: Patrick Bolger Photography</p>

news

'I will go into debt until March': Parents reveal what they do to afford school costs

Cork Crime: Soaring prices drive a surge in the theft of meat

news

Cork Crime: Soaring prices drive a surge in the theft of meat

Cost of electricity: halogen bulb and twenty Euro notes

news

Irish consumers to see lower electricity bills as levy to fund renewable energy to fall 38%

Alcohol Drinking - Stock

comment-analysis

Reducing Vat rate a blunt and costly policy instrument for hospitality

Chris Heinhold: Would a reduced Vat rate have saved my restaurant? Probably not

Chris Heinhold: Would a reduced Vat rate have saved my restaurant? Probably not

For us, like many small businesses that are owner-operated and facing spiralling costs and unsustainable debt, no one solution could have saved us from closure

Fri, 01 Aug, 2025

Government press conference

Jim Power: Budget countdown begins with big promises

Delivery on time and on budget of the aspirations in the revised National Development Plan — energy, water, housing, transport infrastructure, and climate change — will be essential

Sun, 27 Jul, 2025

Tapped out: What went wrong for Killarney Brewing and Distilling?

Tapped out: What went wrong for Killarney Brewing and Distilling?

Once a cross-Atlantic drinks venture, Killarney Brewing collapsed under mounting debt, global headwinds, and post-pandemic pressures

Sat, 26 Jul, 2025

Government may delay hospitality Vat cut to mid-2026 amid budget tradeoffs

Government may delay hospitality Vat cut to mid-2026 amid budget tradeoffs

A potential delay to the VAT reduction from 13.5% to 9% could free up nearly €1bn for other measures

Thu, 24 Jul, 2025

Irish food and alcohol prices among highest in Eurozone, with basic groceries far above EU average

Irish food and alcohol prices among highest in Eurozone, with basic groceries far above EU average

CSO figures reveal Irish consumers pay steep markups for essentials as charities warn of worsening cost-of-living crisis

Wed, 23 Jul, 2025

Calculating energy efficiency and energy bill papers

High utility prices means families cannot take 'shock' of cancelled energy credits, opposition says

Simon Harris took aim at Sinn Féin finance spokesperson Pearse Doherty for Dáil contributions by himself and other Sinn Féin TDs which suggested that SuperValu was owned by an American multinational

Thu, 17 Jul, 2025

Housing and planning measures

Micheál Martin and Mary Lou McDonald clash over inflation pressures on families

McDonald accused the Government of preparing to throw families “under the bus” in the upcoming budget, while Mr Martin said the Sinn Féin leader was “oblivious” to the economic climate

Wed, 16 Jul, 2025

Cost of living crisis

'I hate asking parents for money': Primary schools struggle amid the cost-of-living crisis

School principals in Limerick and Louth tell Jess Casey the forthcoming capitation grant rise will not be enough amid surging prices of everything from utilities to insurance

Tue, 15 Jul, 2025

Child poverty

Charity calls for targeted measures to help financially insecure families with soaring cost of living

'Rising poverty and homelessness rates should not be happening in a wealthy country with a growing economy'

Tue, 15 Jul, 2025

Close up spouses calculating family budget paying online using laptop

MABS sees 10% surge in families in debt due to soaring cost of living

Money Advice and Budgeting Service calls for targeted supports in Budget 2026 amid spiralling cost of housing and utilities

Mon, 14 Jul, 2025

Full shopping cart, customer is stocking vital needs because of global chaos. Shopping with blur supermarket store products, int

'Eat or heat': Irish families cut back on food and other essentials as prices surge 4.6%

Families are buying less, or poorer quality, food as CSO reports grocery price rises at double the general inflation rate

Fri, 11 Jul, 2025

Shopping basket staples rose in price by 4.6% in the past year

Shopping basket staples rose in price by 4.6% in the past year

But overall Consumer Price Index rises by 1.8% in year to June, says CSO

Thu, 10 Jul, 2025

Family shopping in supermarket

Families across Ireland 'scrimping and saving' to afford basic food, Dáil told

Social Democrats TD Jennifer Whitmore said shopping bills had risen €3,000 a year and called for supermarkets to be required to report their profits in Ireland

Wed, 09 Jul, 2025

Government is 'very committed' to reducing the cost of living, Taoiseach insists

Government is 'very committed' to reducing the cost of living, Taoiseach insists

Micheál Martin was responding to criticism from members of the opposition

Tue, 08 Jul, 2025

Mother and son looking out of window

'There’s not much left for any pleasures in life. It’s grim and not getting any better'

Parents are borrowing money to buy food, cancelling medical insurance, and already 'dreading' next winter’s fuel bills

Tue, 08 Jul, 2025

US Ambassador to Ireland hosts 4th July celebrations

Elaine Loughlin: College fees could be the snag that will unravel an already fractious Coalition

Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael had long been eyeing each other with growing distrust, long before Simon Harris and James Lawless blew up the discord over student fees

Sun, 06 Jul, 2025

Excited group of college graduates throwing their hats in celebration

Mick Clifford: Third-level fee rise sparks backlash — but who is really hardest hit?

The backlash over third-level fees exposes not just political short-termism, but a deeper failure to prioritise true hardship

Sat, 05 Jul, 2025

Welfare row: Taoiseach moves to dismiss proposals for two-tier system

Welfare row: Taoiseach moves to dismiss proposals for two-tier system

It comes after Tánaiste Simon Harris said there is 'merit' in unemployment benefit not rising at the same rate as other social welfare payments, such as pensioners

Fri, 04 Jul, 2025

Cost of living crisis

Government rules out cost-of-living package despite another surge in corporation tax receipts

The Government has already warned the next budget will be more restrained than previous years

Fri, 04 Jul, 2025

Aren't we all sick of watching dull rich people by now?

Aren't we all sick of watching dull rich people by now?

In the week after the most lavish wedding of all time, die-hard Sex and the City fan Cathy Cullen on And Just Like That, where everybody is rich and deathly dull

Fri, 04 Jul, 2025

Detail of a man shopping in supermarket

Monthly supermarket spending surges by more than €90m

Further evidence of the rapid rise in food prices

Wed, 02 Jul, 2025

Tánaiste insists student fees will be reduced despite coalition tension

Tánaiste insists student fees will be reduced despite coalition tension

Simon Harris moved to stress that the coalition remains committed to lowering the cost of third-level education

Tue, 01 Jul, 2025

Middle East conflict

Tánaiste hits back at minister as college fees row heats up

Simon Harris takes a direct swipe at higher education minister James Lawless in a voice note to Fine Gael TDs and senators

Mon, 30 Jun, 2025

Students brand move to restore third-level fees as a 'cynical and calculated betrayal'

Higher education minister James Lawless indicated that student fees will go back up after being cut by €1,000 under cost-of-living measures over the past three years

Mon, 30 Jun, 2025

Driver Delivering Online Grocery Order

Grocery prices now rising three times faster than other goods

A pound of butter is now €1.03 more expensive than a year ago, Irish cheddar is up 57c/kg, with two litres of full-fat milk up 27c

Mon, 30 Jun, 2025

Petrol costs

Fueling frustration: Why Irish petrol prices stay high, even when oil doesn’t

Despite relative oil market calm amid Middle East unrest, Irish fuel prices remain high — with tax, volatility, and policy all contributing to pump pain

Sat, 28 Jun, 2025

Hands putting a pepper into a basket

How to save on food bills as prices continue to rise

There are a lot of ways to avoid an eye-watering bill when you get to the supermarket till, writes John Hearne

Fri, 27 Jun, 2025

'He’s not the minister anymore': Fianna Fáil bristles over Harris student fee push

'He’s not the minister anymore': Fianna Fáil bristles over Harris student fee push

Coalition tensions escalate as Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael diverge on plans for student fees in upcoming budget

Fri, 27 Jun, 2025

Government has 'left households to feel the pain' of rising food prices, says Sinn Féin

Government has 'left households to feel the pain' of rising food prices, says Sinn Féin

Social Democrats' deputy leader Cian O'Callaghan called on the Government to require all supermarket chains and retailers to publish detailed and full accounts of their profits

Tue, 24 Jun, 2025

Detail of a man shopping in supermarket

Irish prices on consumer items second highest in EU

Price levels in Ireland for alcohol and tobacco are more than double the EU average, new data shows

Thu, 19 Jun, 2025

Groceries price rises

Revolut customers spending 6% more per transaction on groceries as food prices outpace general inflation

New findings come as CSO figures show food inflation is now running at twice the general rise in price levels

Thu, 19 Jun, 2025

Woman making card payment

Consumer spending up 9% in May

Additional spending on hotels, pubs, and concert tickets

Mon, 16 Jun, 2025

Old broken shoes of a little boy as a symbol for child poverty

Rosita Sweetman: I was poor when the country was — being poor in a rich Ireland must be torture

Ireland is now, statistically, one of the richest countries in the world - but child poverty, or children in consistent poverty, has increased by an astonishing 78% in the past year, according to a new report

Fri, 13 Jun, 2025

Child poverty

Number of children in Ireland in consistent poverty rose 78% to 100,000 in just one year

More than 102,000 children are now in consistent poverty as experts warn Ireland faces a generational poverty crisis without intervention.

Tue, 10 Jun, 2025

Sad boy

Denise Charlton: Child poverty must not be our shameful legacy

Almost 5,000 children in emergency accommodation and 230,000 in material deprivation. Something has gone badly wrong

Tue, 10 Jun, 2025

SPAR Grocery Supermarket.

Spar wants a bigger slice of Ireland's €15bn grocery market

Strategy includes plans for new store openings, upgrading existing sites, and a new design for EuroSpar supermarkets

Sun, 08 Jun, 2025

New childcare fee cap will not benefit most parents

New childcare fee cap will not benefit most parents

Norma Foley's early learning and childcare fee cap of €295 is higher than the weekly fees most parents pay

Thu, 05 Jun, 2025

woman hand hold shopping cart with Abstract blur supermarket aisle background

Grocery prices jump 5% as inflation surges

Good weather in May results in a €50,000 jump in suncare sales

Tue, 03 Jun, 2025

Irish Examiner view: Reaching outward is in the Irish nature

Irish Examiner view: Reaching outward is in the Irish nature

National Museum exhibition on connections between Ireland and St Gall shows while the drive by extremists to gaze within might be appealing in a dangerous world, we have always gained more by gazing without

Mon, 02 Jun, 2025

Irish Examiner view: Perfect is the enemy of good

Irish Examiner view: Perfect is the enemy of good

Ireland’s IVF policies are unfinished business from the past two decades and are viewed as 'outdated and bureaucratic' by fertility experts

Sat, 31 May, 2025

'SMEs are being squeezed from every side': ISME urges National Minimum Wage reset

'SMEs are being squeezed from every side': ISME urges National Minimum Wage reset

Neil McDonnell, Chief Executive of ISME, said: 'We need policies that back Irish businesses, not just foreign multinationals.'

Wed, 28 May, 2025

100% mortgages would drive up house prices, Central Bank warns

100% mortgages would drive up house prices, Central Bank warns

Celtic Tiger-style 100% home loans would also increase risk to borrowers and banks, Mark Cassidy told the Oireachtas housing committee

Tue, 27 May, 2025

child and parent hands holding money jar, donation, saving, charity, family finance plan concept, Coronavirus economic stimulus

Cost of raising a child from 'cradle to college' has grown 60% in 10 years, study says

For teenagers who may be living away at college, rents have risen from €3,320 a year in 2015 to €4,536 in 2025

Tue, 13 May, 2025

Government rules out cost-of-living measures to fend off effects of potential US tariffs

Government rules out cost-of-living measures to fend off effects of potential US tariffs

It comes as the EU launched a 'public consultation' on a list of US imports which could become subject to EU countermeasures if negotiations do not result in the removal of US tariffs

Fri, 09 May, 2025