Sinn Féin's Mr Caoimhghín Ó Caoláin, accused the Government of having a "well-deserved reputation as a Government of broken promises and broken mandates".
He said the publication of the Bill [on Nice] and the referendum re-run was a "denial of democracy". He said there is "no precedent" in the history of the State for what "the Government has done with regard to the Treaty of Nice".
He said the electorate's mandate was "spurned" by the Government when the Taoiseach and the government chose "not only not to implement the decision of the electorate in a referendum but to openly defy it". He said the Government had ignored the potential bargaining power given to it by the electorate in last year's vote.
He called for the "retention of the right of each State to veto measures as currently laid down, no extension of qualified majority voting and the retention of the right of each State to nominate a Commissioner." He also said all EU institutions should be more accountable to national parliaments and to the individual citizen "through institutional reform and the elimination of excessive EU bureaucracy".
Concluding, Mr Ó Caoláin said he believed the Nice Treaty would be rejected again by the electorate and that would be welcomed by people all over Europe "who want to reclaim the EU for the citizens and to halt the anti-democratic drive to create a superstate".
Calling for a Yes vote, Fine Gael's, John Bruton, said while the European Union law-making process could be much improved, it was not a "final product" in its current form and that Ireland could be an "architect and an artisan" in its future direction.
Issues affecting Ireland were global. He said rises in global interest rates, global markets and trade affect the Irish jobs market. He said Ireland could exercise control on these matters from within the EU. Comparing Ireland to Iceland and Finland, Mr Bruton asked if Ireland wanted the formality of independence or a say in shaping the policies that define the European market.
Accusing the leaders of the NO campaign of not being sincere, Mr Bruton said Irish people have a stark choice to make. Quoting the words of Samuel Johnson, he said "we can opt for solitude and have our dreams for ourselves" or opt for union.
Concluding, Mr Bruton said the Nice Treaty would become a dead letter if rejected and that it would be a step into the dark for Ireland. He said the Irish case in Europe would be less likely to get a good hearing, leaving the country in a weak negotiating position.