The chairman of the Referendum Commission, Mr Justice Finlay, has rejected claims by the Green Party that a commission broadcast on the Amsterdam Treaty is neither impartial nor fair.
Launching the Referendum Commission's campaign on the treaty yesterday, the chairman said his group approached the issue "without fear, favour or affection for any side of the argument". The commission sought to put the arguments in a way that was "fair and proper" and, in his view, it had succeeded, he added.
Mr Justice Finlay was responding to questions raised by a Green Party statement claiming that the recent public service broadcast on neutrality was "an exercise in manufacturing consent".
The Green Party TD, Mr John Gormley, said no objective observer could claim the television broadcast was impartial and that it clearly favoured the "Yes" side. It showed a man and woman - John and Mary - talking about Irish neutrality.
"Mary was portrayed as the uninformed, intuitive individual, who asked the question while John came across as the rational male who knew the facts and had the final word. Not only was the broadcast slanted, it was also sexist", Mr Gormley said.
However, Mr Justice Finlay said the commission paid particular attention to what was being broadcast and sought to be impartial.