Eamon Ryan says Government has votes to defeat motion of no confidence

Green Party leader Eamon Ryan has insisted the Government will have the votes to defeat a motion of no confidence in it on Wednesday.

The Labour Party has tabled the motion in response to the Government’s decision not to extend the moratorium on evictions at the end of the month. If the Government were to lose the vote, it would trigger the dissolution of the Dáil and a general election.

Speaking at the Inchicore Railway Works in Dublin on Wednesday morning, Mr Ryan said he was “confident we will” have the votes, despite significant opposition from stakeholders and disquiet within his own party over the move.

“We had a margin last week,” he said. “We’ll set out the various measures the Government are introducing to address what is a real issue and a real concern to all our people.

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“That concern belongs to everyone. There is no one political party that has ownership over wanting our children to be able to raise a family and have a home.

“We have perhaps two years left in this Government and we are going to do everything in our power in the two years to deliver housing for our people, and I have confidence in our ability to make that happen.”

[ Dáil Live: Latest updates as Government faces no-confidence vote ]

Mr Ryan said the Government would focus on measure it is introducing as a “safety net” for tenants facing eviction.

“What’s also coming in the next few days is the safety net,” he said. “We’re putting in a radical change that if someone is threatened with eviction be they on social welfare, they get the tenant in situ programme.

“Others will be able to purchase the property or the local authority or an Approved Housing Body can purchase the property, so that gives them security of tenure. That’s a radical change that will be introduced on April 1st.

“That’s the key element that we will be focused on in the confidence motion. We also have to provide the housing. The key solution here is we have to expand our delivery of housing, and we are going to do everything to do that.

“What we are seeing from the opposition is slogans rather than real solutions. It’s out job in Government to deliver solutions.”