Independent TDs Michael Lowry announced today he would be backing the Government over tomorrow's budget.
Kerry South Independent TD Jackie Healy-Rae said this evening he is likely to vote in support of the Government.
In a statement, Mr Lowry, who represents Tipperary North, said Ireland was in grave economic danger.
“The consequences of not passing a budget would be disastrous for Ireland and its people. It takes experience, political maturity and courage to make the hard decision and do what is right for our country,” he said. “Despite some adverse reaction in my constituency to this decision, I feel duty bound to put the country’s interests first.
“Failure to pass a budget would lead to further economic failure. If our Government and political leaders renege on a vital condition of our agreement with the EU-IMF we will suffer irreparable reputational damage. Such an abdication of governance would attract ridicule and scorn throughout Europe and the international financial markets."
The Government currently has a majority of two in the Dáil, including Mr Lowry and Mr Healy-Rae. If the two Independents had decided to abstain on the vote it could have been tied. If they voted against it, the budget would have faced defeat unless some Opposition TDs abstained or voted for it.
Minister for Foreign Affairs Micheal Martin said today he was confident the budget, to be announced by Minister for Finance Brian Lenihan tomorrow, would be passed.
“It is important for the country that that would happen and my sense around Leinster House over the last number of weeks is that [there is a realisation] that the budget should go through, and that’s across the board,” he said in Cork this morning.
“That said, it’s going to be a very difficult budget and one cannot take any vote for granted,” he said. “The Government is very conscious of that and is very anxious for sake of country to get the budget through and we are doing everything we can to facilitate that.”
The Government majority also includes three Fianna Fáil TDs currently without the whip, including Tipperary South TD Mattie McGrath, who has been a vocal critic of some Government policies and the Fianna Fáil leadership. He said last night he had not made up his mind yet on the budget.
His decision on how to cast his vote would depend on “how much taxation is going to be got from the elites that are running the country”.
Dublin North-Central Independent Finian McGrath said he had not made up his mind either and his decision would be based on the treatment of “people with disabilities, cystic fibrosis patients, small businesses, senior citizens and social welfare recipients”.
Fine Gael TD for Dublin South-East Lucinda Creighton said she would consider abstaining on the budget if Mr Lowry and Mr Healy-Rae failed to support it. She said as the party “that is about to lead the country”, Fine Gael had “responsibilities to ensure that the budget goes through”.
A party spokesman said: “We cannot support a budget we haven’t seen from a Government we can’t trust.”
Tánaiste Mary Coughlan last night said the budget would include a reduction in politicians' pay and pensions.
"All these pensions and salaries will be reduced accordingly on the basis that, although people have forgotten that we did take massive reductions in ministerial pay, as did the Taoiseach last year, all politicians took reductions in their salaries and their expenses on the basis that others had to do with less and they would have to do with less," she said on RTÉ's The Week in Politics.
Cuts in social welfare payments are expected to include a reduction of €8 or €9 in the Jobseeker’s Allowance. Child benefit will be cut by 10 per cent and the airport travel tax is likely to be cut from €10 to €2.