Justice Minister Naomi Long also criticised the communities minister, adding: “It may have been in the public domain, but by naming it, he actually elevated it and that is the responsibility that comes with being a public figure and a minister.
“To say he wasn’t consulted, to me, is just an extraordinary statement.”
The SDLP’s Matthew O’Toole said he would refer Lyons to the standards commissioner over his comments, saying “lives are at stake”.
The Committee for Communities passed a vote of no confidence in the minister on Thursday morning.
It was tabled by Sinn Féin MLA Maolíosa McHugh who said he proposed it as the minister had implied “that he or his party needs to be consulted before one considers the use of a council facility to accommodate people in total distress”.
Green Party councillor Áine Groogan accused the minister of choosing to “stir division and deflect from his own failures”.