O’Keeffe’s Dáil vote absence unexplained

MAVERICK TD Ned O’Keeffe last night insisted he was the victim of “intimidation” and refused to explain why he missed one of the most important Dáil votes for over a decade.

The Cork East deputy repeatedly refused to explain his controversial absence from the Oireachtas on Wednesday night when Bertie Ahern narrowly survived the first vote of no confidence in a Taoiseach since 1994.

Mr O’Keeffe’s non-attendance helped slash the Government’s majority from the expected 13 to just five.