Ciarán Nugent: Wage rises have not been enough to recoup the cost of living increases for many

The share of market income going to top fifth of households in Ireland, is almost 13 times that of the bottom.

House prices and rent continue to rise and the gap in living standards between owners and the rest widens.

The latest figures show inflation has fallen to 2.8% and continues on a downward trend following an unprecedented year of rapidly increasing prices.

Although this remains high relative to the European Central Bank’s target of 2% and higher than at any stage since the financial crisis in 2008, the latest figures show average wage growth slightly ahead of inflation and real wages up by about 1% over the year.