Irish government wins confidence vote over fuel protests

The Dáil (Irish parliament) has voted that it has confidence in the Irish government.

A motion of no confidence had been tabled over its handling of fuel protests last week, which saw blockades at fuel depots and motorways around the country and caused widespread traffic disruption.

The largest opposition party, Sinn Féin, tabled a motion of no confidence on Tuesday, but the Irish government subsequently tabled a motion of confidence in itself, which has the power to override a motion from the opposition.

However, the Irish government is damaged as a result of the vote, losing two TDs (Irish members of parliament) - including a junior minister, who voted against the government.

The confidence motion was debated by TDs in the Dáil, and the final vote saw the government win 92 votes to 78.

Only the two Healy-Rae brothers, who had agreed to support the government as part of the coalition deal after the last general election, voted against the government.

Kerry TD Michael Healy-Rae resigned as junior minister in the Department of Agriculture.

Speaking outside the parliament, he said the taoiseach's speech during the debate was "condescending" and said the government had "lost the people".

He said he could not "be true to the people of Kerry" and vote confidence in the government.

A protest took place outside during the debate.

TDs from government and opposition parties fired blows across the Dáil chamber while the confidence motion was being debated.

During the debate, Taoiseach Micheál Martin told the Dáil that since 2022, government measures have "shielded consumers" from the highest fuel prices.

He hit out at "false claims" by the opposition, including Sinn Féin's assertion that Ireland is the "biggest profiteer" from higher fuel prices, saying it is "flat out untrue".

He said the government was "already spending dramatically more on measures to help people with fuel costs than it is receiving in extra taxes".

Martin said the blockades at fuel depots and at an oil refinery last week were "destructive".

"Nobody has the right to appoint themselves as the voice of the people," he said.

He condemned the "targeting" of gardaí (Irish police) and lorry drivers as well as threats to politicians.

"We should all be concerned with the attempts to import extreme ideologies here."

Tanaiste (deputy prime minister) Simon Harris said other governments and other executives - such as the one in Northern Ireland - have not responded to economic shocks like the Irish government has.

"We entered 2026 from relative economic strength. We expect the Irish economy to grow, albeit at a slower pace than before expected."

He also hit out at the opposition, particularly Sinn Féin, who heckled him from the opposition benches.

He said "nobody in this Republic" gets the right to restrict the movement "of anybody else".

The Sinn Féin leader, who is the leader of the opposition in the Dáil, Mary Lou McDonald, called for a general election, saying it was the government's "time to go".

McDonald said the government "refused and refuses to listen" and had acted to "inflame an already desperate situation".

"Your time is up. All of this didn't start last week. The seeds were sown in your Budget last October,' she said.

She criticised the Dáil not sitting for 20 days during the Easter break, saying the taoiseach is "completely out of touch".

She said people everywhere were calling for "real action" and "real leadership".

The party's finance spokesperson Pearse Doherty said there had been "no real leadership" from the government on fuel costs.

He said the Irish government's "instinct" was not to help struggling people who decided to protest last week but to "threaten them".