Byrne stayed put but should be sacked anyway

Last Monday, word emerged that Fine Gael junior minister Catherine Byrne was on the verge of voting against the Government.

It became known that Byrne, a TD for Dublin South Central and Minister for Drugs Strategy, was contemplating supporting a motion of no confidence in her party colleague, Housing Minister Eoghan Murphy.

For hours, the story, reported by most news outlets, went unchallenged from Byrne’s side.