Irish Examiner view: Political jockeying amid crisis

The Government has won the Dáil vote on the eviction ban which will see it lifted on March 31.

Yesterday’s Dáil vote on the eviction ban was the focus of much attention, and little wonder.

In the run-up to the vote we had many of the feature elements of political controversy: A red-button topic under discussion; an opposition motion which drew popular support outside the House; those same opposition parties with the scent of Government blood in the nostrils; Government TDs going rogue to defy the whip; the loss of long-standing pairing arrangements; and a courting of Independent TDs to tip the scales in the Government’s favour.