The Government has won its vote on the Mahon tribunal in the Dáil by 76 to 67 following further heated debate in the house.
The Government motion urged the tribunal to continue its work and said it looks forward to receiving the tribunal's report as soon as possible so the Dáil can debate and deliberate on its findings.
It condemned the leaking of tribunal documents as a breach of confidentiality and said it infringed the rights of those affected.
The motion also said it supported appropriate actions to investigate such leaks and went on to reaffirm the right of witnesses to engage in confidential correspondence with the tribunal.
Debate between the Government and Opposition members was heated during today's debate, one Green Party member accusing Fine Gael of taking bribes from developers saying he was not convinced Fine Gael were "paragons of virtue in this regard".
Fine Gael then called on the member to produce evidence of his claims.
Minister Tony Killeen then accused the Greens of further trying to confuse the issue by shifting the focus.
Earlier in the debate Fianna Fáil TD Martin Mansergh came out in strong defence of the Taoiseach.
"The attempt to bring him down does no service what so ever to this country and reflects poorly on the leadership substance of Enda Kenny and Eamon Gilmore," he said.
Mr Mansergh said he wanted to see no more good Governments brought down by "synthetic" nonsense like the passport issue of the last 24 hours.
Fine Gael TD Phil Hogan said the party opposed any motion which supported the discussion of the procedures and practises of the Tribunal in the Dail as it simply formalised the undermining of the Tribunal by the Government.
"It is nothing more than a cover for slagging of the Tribunal in the manner in which we have seen in the last couple of months when the heat is getting hotter in respect of the Taoiseach's evidence," he said.
For the past year Fianna Fail politicians had been relentless in attacking the Tribunal but they were simply trying to "distrct from the chaos of the Taoiseach's evidence," he said.
Fianna Fail TD Martin Cullen said Fine Gael's motion was superficial and complacent and suggestions the workings of the Tribunal should not be discussed in the Dail because it undermined the Tribunal's workings were "ludicrous".
"What we now need is the tribunals work to proceed to a conclusion which includes treating all persons fairly and to the same standards. It should also seek to challenge those that have caused it serious difficulty," he said.
In opening the debate yesterday, party leader Enda Kenny accused Fianna Fáil of mounting "a sinister and orchestrated attack" on the integrity of the Mahon tribunal.
Mr Kenny claimed that, one by one, Fianna Fáil Ministers had queued to go on the airwaves to attack the way in which the tribunal was doing its work.
The Taoiseach, said Mr Kenny, had sought to undermine the tribunal, including accusations that it was trying to "stitch him up". Mr Ahern had complained on the public airways that he did not get the same fair hearing as other witnesses at the tribunal, the Fine Gael leader said.
Labour leader Mr Gilmore renewed his call on the Taoiseach to resign. "The Taoiseach and his colleagues know that the only remaining question about his future is how long he can actually cling to power. His clinging on to office does him no credit."
Minister for Defence Willie O'Dea attacked the Opposition, however, alleging their motion "is not about fair procedures or fair treatment. It is not about the expeditious conduct of the tribunal's business. It is about political invective. It is about using and abusing the tribunal process to do what it could not achieve by electoral or normal political means".