Aontú leader Peadar Tóibín has sought to defend his party over criticism for allowing four Independent TDs, who plan to back the government in every Dáil vote, to join his opposition technical group for speaking rights.
The Independent TDs supporting the new government want to join a technical group with Mr Tóibín and Paul Lawless of Aontú as well as Independent Carol Nolan.
Deputy leader of the Social Democrats, Cian O'Callaghan, called on Aontú to pull the plug on the arrangement, while Sinn Féin TD Johnny Guirke accused Mr Tóibín of facilitating "stroke politics" and propping up a "grubby backroom deal."
In his statement to RTÉ News, deputy Tóibín has said Aontú is "completely opposed to this government" and even ruled out government formation talks with the parties before the election because of their policies.
He added that if a deputy is not in a technical group in the Dáil then "you have little or no speaking rights. You have to beg, borrow, and steal one minute here and two minutes there to speak".
Deputy Tóibín added: "Aontú has always called for the standing orders of the Dáil to be reformed to allow for each TD to be able to speak in the Dáil on an equal basis.
"This should be the democratic basis of any parliament and it would prevent the current difficulties."
"If anyone thinks that that Aontú is going to give up our hard fought right to represent our constituents in the Dáil, they are very wrong. It is ludicrous for any party to demand that Aontú give up our speaking rights without offering to share their speaking rights with us."
Replying to Deputy O'Callaghan's demand that Aontú pull the plug on the Technical Group, Mr Tóibín replied that the group was not dependent on Aontú TDs to exist.
Yet opposition parties have castigated Aontú for continuing with the plan, saying their legal advice is that it should not be allowed to stand.
Mr O'Callaghan, said it was "absolutely incorrect" for deputy Tóibín to claim the Independent TDs backing the government would not have speaking time in the Dáil.
He said: "All government backbench TDs have speaking rights. That's facilitated through the government whips. The government has time to allocate to all their backbench TDs."
Mr Guirke, who is a TD in the same constituency as Mr Tóibín, said the Aontú leader had "failed to answer why he is propping up the grubby deal between Fianna Fáil, Fine Gael and the so-called Independents."
He added: "He [Peadar Tóibín] has finally come out of hiding. But in his 500 words of guff, he has failed to explain why he is facilitating this coalition of chancers".
Labour TD Alan Kelly warned both Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael that they are facing big trouble.
"Micheal Martin is wrong when he says the public aren't exercised about this. The public are very exercised about this because in no parliament in the world, and in no chamber in the world, do members of the government sit on opposition benches. The public gets that."
Deputy Kelly said that attempts by outgoing ministers to defend the plan in the media were "just not credible."
He added: "I'm embarrassed for them."
The four Independent TDs seeking to join the technical group are Danny Healy Rae, Michael Lowry, Barry Heneghan, and Gillian Toole.
Five other Independent TDs are becoming junior ministers in the next government.
These are: Sean Canney, Noel Grealish, Kevin 'Boxer' Moran, Marian Harkin, and Michael Healy Rae.
It comes as five opposition groups will make a joint submission this week to oppose the proposal that a group of TDs, who are supporting the government, can sit on the opposition benches to secure additional Dáil speaking rights.
The groups include Sinn Féin, Labour, Social Democrats, People Before Profit/Solidarity and independents.
In a statement, they said: "We are united together in challenging any interpretation of standing orders that would facilitate this. The Ceann Comhairle [Verona Murphy] should publish the legal advice she received last week."
The TDs who are supporting the new coalition are Michael Lowry, Danny Healy-Rae, Barry Heneghan, and Gillian Toole.
Sinn Féin said it has received legal advice on the issue.
It said: "In order for the Ceann Comhairle to be satisfied that the three Regional Independent TDs should be permitted to form a technical group in the manner outlined above she would need to be satisfied that they are 'members in opposition'.
"It is difficult to see how such a conclusion could be reached on any rational basis given that the group participated in government formation talks with Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael, reached an agreement with those parties on the text of the Programme for Government, members of that group are to become Junior Ministers in that government, including some who will sit at Cabinet, and the lead negotiator on behalf of the Regional Independent Group, who now wishes to be recognised as a 'member in opposition' has made a public statement to the effect that the group would 'support the next government on the good days and the bad days'."
The Labour Party said it has also received legal advice on the issue.
The party said the advice "... confirms that we have clear legal grounds to object to any attempt to create a purported entitlement of government supporters to eat into Dáil time that is allocated to the opposition."
The party believes that a joint submission from opposition parties would be appropriate.
