Ireland’s coalition government overcomes Sinn Féin’s motion of censure

The coalition government of Ireland has overcome this Tuesday with 85 votes in favor, 66 against and one abstention the motion of censure presented by the Irish nationalist party Sinn Féin.

The chairwoman of the Irish nationalist Sinn Féin party, Mary Lou McDonald, announced on Friday that she would table a motion of censure against the coalition government after it lost its parliamentary majority earlier in the week.

McDonald has claimed that the motion was being tabled because change was needed more than ever. “A government that is unraveling before our eyes has lost the support of the people. Last week it lost its majority in the Dáil, and now the Taoiseach is struggling to get the votes to win a confidence motion,” he said, as reported by ‘Independent’.

Thus, he has stressed that the coalition should leave now and make way for a government that finally puts workers and families first.

“This government has not only failed to improve, but has managed to make a bad situation much worse. This is especially true with regard to housing, healthcare and the cost of living crisis, which has literally brought households to the brink,” he added.

Sinn Féin’s move came after the coalition government lost its majority in the Irish Assembly — the Dáil Éireann — following the resignation of Joe McHugh MP to remain the conservative Fine Gael’s enforcer of discipline and vote against a number of measures. His departure meant that the conservative coalition formed by Fine Gael, Fianna Fáil and the Green Party was no longer in the majority.

In this context, the Irish government is grappling with the problems of how to deal with the rising cost of living and housing that Sinn Féin blames it for.