A Government TD has defended Ministers labelled 'posh boys' by party colleagues.
Fine Gael's Noel Rock says they should be judged on their ability to run the country and not on their background.
Reports have emerged today that there's a rift in the party with some Ministers worried that the image will 'kill' their chances of re-election.
But Deputy Rock thinks people like the Housing Minister Eoghan Murphy should be judged on his record alone:
"your background shouldn't affect the job you do or the esteem that you're held in. I mean Eoghan should be judged by the metrics of housing, some would say he's doing well against a difficult backdrop others would say he's not doing so well"