Cullen to review political donations

The Minister for the Environment, Mr Cullen, has pledged to review the operation of ethics rules covering donations to political campaigns in the light of the experience of the Nice referendum campaign.

Responding to questions at a Fianna Fáil press conference yesterday about the funding of both the No to Nice campaign and AfrI, Mr Cullen said he wanted to look again at the obligations on groups to reveal their funding in the way that political parties had to.

The Minister of State for Justice, Mr Willie O'Dea, lashed out at Mr Justin Barrett who, he said, he was not collecting money "but was spending it like a drunken sailor".

Speaking on the economic effects of a No vote, Mr Cullen warned that "especially during this international downturn, people need to realise that we can't stand still and we must not force Europe to stand still".

He said the No side "have yet to make a single credible economic argument against the treaty" and was instead "dredging up increasingly outrageous scares."

Asked whether the accession of cheap wage economies was not likely to draw jobs from Ireland, particularly its traditional industrial base, Mr Cullen said that such "challenges" were an inevitable part of the global economy.

Many companies operating in Ireland, he argued, were also operating in markets which were not as expensive as Ireland.

The key to our ability to retain such business, he said, was the maintenance of a good quality, educated workforce, above all, the ability to move and alter speedily.

"The opportunities far outweigh the challenges," he insisted.

"For 30 years Europe has invested in our common future. Now the question for us is whether or not we want to keep with a proven record or turn our back on it."