Taoiseach Micheál Martin has told he’s happy for Sinn Fein to bring forward a motion of no confidence in his Government so they outline its success.
Sinn Fein is expected to table a motion of no-confidence in the Government on Friday as Mary Lou McDonald said people have “run out of patience” and her party is ready to be in power.
She also appealed to Independent TDs to “please stop” propping up the Government to ensure they win a majority in the Dáil.
Read More: Sinn Fein to table motion of no confidence in the Government next week
The Coalition lost its majority in the Dáil on Wednesday night after Fine Gael TD Joe McHugh resigned the party whip and voted against the Government on the legislation covering compensation for mica-affected homeowners.
Reacting to the news, Mr Martin said: “We have a good working majority.
“We welcome the opportunity to present and outline the fact that this has been a competent and a good Government.”
Mr Martin said this includes the country’s response to Covid-19, climate change and its plans for tackling the housing crisis.
He said it’s not unexpected that Sinn Fein would put down such a motion when the Dáil is due to rise next week.
He also said he is “not at all” worried about the state of Fianna Fáil heading into the next General Elections and reiterated he intends to lead the party when that happens.
It comes after a group of 30 TDs and Senators met on Wednesday night to discuss the party’s identity and how to revive the party before the next election.
Speaking on Thursday, Ms McDonald said her party would consider tabling a motion of no-confidence on Friday morning due to what she said is a failure of the Government to act on housing and healthcare.
She said: “The Government has now lost its majority.
“We’ve had two years now of what I would describe as disastrous Government in the areas of housing, healthcare, we’ve moved from one fiasco to the next.
“The appetite for change is so evident in the last general election has not gone away, as a matter of fact, it’s grown.
“And secondly people have now run out of patience, if they had any to begin with, with this Government.
“They no longer have a majority, I have no doubt that they believe they could limp on.
It’s understood Sinn Fein were hoping to make the announcement about the motion of no confidence on Friday but the media reported it on Thursday.
Reacting to the motion of no confidence, backbench Government TDs have slammed the party for trying to create a “pantomime.”
People Before Profit have also called for Micheál Martin’s Government to go and they have also been “actively considering” putting forward a motion of no confidence.
In May, the Green Party removed the party whip and suspended Patrick Costello and Nessa Hourigan from the parliamentary party for six months after they voted against the Government on the proposed relocation of the National Maternity Hospital to a site at St Vincent’s Hospital in Dublin.
Fianna Fáil TD Marc MacSharry also resigned from Fianna Fáil back in September after criticising how the party was being run ahead of a no confidence motion tabled at the time against Foreign Affairs Minister Simon Coveney.
Despite this, in reality, the Government will likely win votes with the support of several Independent TDs but it’s not guaranteed.
Government TDs were expressing a “little concern” that there could be pressure to get the Budget through the Dáil if it doesn’t “speak to TDs who normally vote with us.”
Tanáiste Leo Varadkar told his party colleagues on Wednesday night that he was “confident the Government will continue to have a working majority in the Dáil and had not yet come close to losing a vote.”
People Before Profit have said that they have no confidence in the Government, that the Government “must go” and that there should be a motion of no confidence to that effect, which they have been actively considering putting forward.
The party said that the government’s failure to deliver an emergency cost of living package before the summer recess along with the government's clear inability to prevent the housing crisis from getting worse were clear reasons why the government should be “relieved of its duties.”
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