Day 15: The Fiscal Treaty

Labour call on YES vote with American Chamber and their "Yes to Investment" campaign. Sinn Féin and People Before Profit condemn Finance Minister's Fête Cheese remarks. Labour say Sinn Féin are twisting the facts. Fine Gael's Brian Hayes and Labour's Michael McCarthy attack Libertas. Libertas go on the defence and join the NO side.

YES to Investment

Éamonn Gilmore was speaking at the American Chamber of Commerce where he told the Chamber that the Stability treaty provides a platform for inward investment and growth for Ireland. The American Chamber was an early entrant into the YES campaign with their "Yes to Investment" Campaign.

Fête Cheese

Sinn Féin's finance spokesperson Pearse Doherty says many people would not recognizes Michael Noonan's Ireland. Pearse Doherty was responding to comments made by the Minister for Fiance on Bloomberg today, he concluded by saying "The people of this country need investment in jobs and growth not spin and scaremongering. Minister Noonan would do well to talk to the real people in our economy before he claims that we have turned a corner".

Richard Boyd Barrett has said that the Austerity Treaty will not prevent Ireland from becoming like Greece. He condemned Minister Noonan's "Fête Cheese" statement as "utterly disgraceful and callous". Richard Boyd Barrett said that Greece had fallen due to their implementation of the first round of EU-IMF austerity not because people resisted this austerity. He said "let’s look calmly at the course of events: Greece only reluctantly imposed the first austerity program and was then forced into a second austerity program which massacred an already suffering economy. The Greek economy is in the dire state that it’s in now precisely because it implemented the first round of austerity, not because its people opposed it."

Sinn Féin Twisting Facts

Labour's Dominic Hannigan has claimed that Sinn Féin are continuing to "twist facts" on the Stability Treaty. He says that the Court of Justice of the EU will not fine countries meeting their targets under the new treaty and their role is limited to those who do not meet their targets. Dominic Hannigan called for parties to "stop the spin and let's have a proper, factual debate on this Treaty, which will have huge importance for Ireland in our recovery"

Libertas Who?

Libertas has joined the No side in the debate and Fine Gael's Brian Hayes said today that Ganley is joining Sinn Féin in "misleading the public" on the treaty. Brian Hayes said that he wanted to make it clear that the Treaty has nothing to do with Ireland's rate of corporation tax. He concluded by saying "Sinn Féin’s credibility on the Treaty has already been undermined, as they continue to misrepresent its contents and its implications for Ireland. Now, we see Declan Ganley is resorting to the same tactics". Meanwhile Labour's Michael McCarthy called Ganley's entry into the debate as "a Vanity project" .

Responding to Michael McCarthy Libertas as the questioned WHO? They pointed to his €100,000 pay check from the Dail and then reprinted his attack against Declan Ganley who Mr. McCarthy cannot understand his reasons for joining in the debate. Libertas responded by saying that "these guys want to talk about anything except what's in the treaty." and they called on Mr. McCarthy to actually debate the treaty with Mr. Ganley.