Sinn Féin files motion of censure against Ireland’s coalition government

The president of the Irish nationalist party Sinn Féin, Mary Lou McDonald, has announced this Friday that they will present a motion of censure against the coalition government, after it lost its parliamentary majority earlier this week.

“Today we are tabling the motion of censure on the Government. This Government has lost its parliamentary majority, it has failed to address the cost of living and housing crises,” McDonald announced, as can be read on his Twitter profile.

“This government is out of touch with reality and out of time. We need a government that puts workers and families first,” she has remarked.

Sinn Féin’s move comes after the coalition government lost its majority in the Irish Assembly — the Dáil Éireann — following MP Joe McHugh’s resignation to remain the conservative Fine Gael’s enforcer of discipline and vote against a series of measures.

His departure means that the Conservative coalition consisting of Fine Gael, Fianna Fáil and the Green Party is no longer in the majority. However, the motion of censure is not expected to succeed due to the large number of independent MPs who are expected to vote against it.

However, upon return from the summer recess, that lack of majority from which the coalition now suffers will make for a difficult autumn as the Government grapples with the problems of how to deal with the rising cost of living and housing that Sinn Féin blames it for.