The Minister for Communications, Mr Dermot Ahern, has said the Government has "recommitted" itself to extending medical card availability and recruiting 2,000 extra gardaí.
He was speaking in the wake of renewed Opposition criticism over broken campaign promises.
While these promises were not acted on after the 2002 General Election when the Government immediately implemented surprise cutbacks, Mr Ahern indicated yesterday that the Government would seek to deliver on them now.
The Tánaiste, Ms Harney, said last night that she wanted to see those on the minimum wage taken out of the tax net, and those on the average industrial wage paying tax only at the standard rate before the end of this Government's term.
Her remarks follow the statement in the Government's own progress report, published at the weekend, that "renewed focus" would now be put on the question of widening the bands.
The Government has been criticised for failing to index-link tax bands in the last two budgets, thus effectively increasing income tax on everyone.
Rejecting Opposition criticism of the Government's second progress report since 2002, Mr Ahern said the document showed they had increased spending on health, social welfare and education. In relation to medical cards he said: "We recommit ourselves in this document to raising the guidelines in such a way so that more and more people will get medical cards." And in relation to the promised recruitment of 2,000 extra gardaí, he said: "We recommit ourselves to increasing the Garda strength up to 14,000."
Speaking on RTÉ radio, Mr Ahern said they were only two years into a five-year plan and Ministers considered they were now entering the second phase of the Government.
"We will be targeting the increases in the expenditure that we will have on things like education, on health and social welfare."