It's a concern to me that during last week's vote of confidence on Willie O'Dea, the Independent TD for Dublin Central chose to abstain rather than vote against the government.
The former Minister for Defence admitted he had attempted to smear a Sinn Féin candidate in the local elections, and then submitted false information in a sworn court document to cover this up. He resigned, but not before some TD's voted to support him.
Last week's vote presented a clear opportunity to show disapproval of his behaviour and the behaviour of the government. I fail to see why the Independent TD's who claim not to support the government did not take this chance. Has their support been promised to Cowen and Coughlan?
If so, for what?
They need to clarify where they stand.
If there is some deal on the table for the Independents to support Fianna Fáil in the event of the Green Party walkout, their constituents deserve to know what is going on.
