A Fianna Fáil TD has said he can "cope" with abuse targetted at him, but draws the line when "children or family members are targeted".
Barry Cowen has revealed his children - who range in age from 15 to 28 - were subjected to online abuse following comments he made in the Dáil.
Mr Cowen apologised for saying that extending the eviction ban was like "making sweets free for children".
“It’s like making sweets free for children, it’s fine for a little while but ultimately detrimental to the greater need,” he told the Dáil.
Speaking to the Business Post, he added that the personal attacks of the last week had been difficult.
Mr Cowen faced criticism from opposition TDs after drawing the analogy.
Addressing Mr Cowen's comment, Taoiseach Leo Varadkar said: “I don’t think it was a good analogy, and I’m sure he would agree that they weren’t the correct words to use."
