A heated exchange took place on the Dáil floor yesterday after a Sinn Féin TD revealed that his brother, a recovering heroin addict, is homeless.

After O'Brien made the revelation about his brother, Deputy Eric Byrne questioned why his family didn't take him in. Mr O'Brien told him to "shut your mouth."

A heated exchange took place:

The Cork North Central deputy told of his brother’s plight, who is unable to get permanent accommodation in the city and staying in a number of hostels, during Leader’s Question to Tanaiste Joan Burton in Leinster House.

This morning, Mr O'Brien spoke to Newstalk Breakfast about some of the problems that his brother is currently facing.

"Drug addiction and homelessness go hand in hand."

"One of the important things is when you come out of drug rehab, you have to be close to the supports.

"Given the rent allowance limits that are in place, the nearest accommodation he could find for that limit would have been 20 miles from those supports."

Mr O'Brien also spoke about political will in relation to the issue: "This is not about bashing the government, this is about trying to find solutions, this is about trying to save my own brother. There's many other families out there who are facing the same issue.

"They're just looking for some supports."