FINE GAEL was accused yesterday by Independent candidate Mary Davis of using polling companies to generate “attack messages” and “negative stories” in the presidential campaign.
Speaking in Dublin yesterday at the formal launch of her campaign, Ms Davis accused Fine Gael of “paying a lot of money to polling companies to hone attack messages” in the election.
A Fine Gael spokesman said: “These are surprising accusations by Ms Davis and it is hard to imagine where she got this idea.”
In her speech, Ms Davis said most of her rivals were professional politicians who may have thought she would “fold” in the face of criticism. “Let me tell them – they could not be more wrong.
“They are reverting to type – engaging in the type of negative campaigning that has made Irish people so cynical about politics.
“Paying a lot of money to polling companies to hone attack messages is not what this campaign should be about.
“Paying money to polling companies may serve the partisan aims of a political party but it does not serve the cause of the debate about our future here in Ireland.
“But I know that I can deal with negative stories for one reason – I have nothing to hide.
“Most of what has been written about me is already in the public domain, and I have been willing to be open and transparent in dealing with any queries that have arisen,” she said.
Asked afterwards who was paying for “attack messages” , she said: “It would appear to me from the reports in the paper that it is driven by Fine Gael.
“Now I’m rather surprised at that and I would really like if Fine Gael would come out and contradict that.
“Gay Mitchell, to me, seems to be a very decent person, so I don’t know why political groups or any candidate would use negative polling in the way that it is being used, but I do know for a fact that it is being used.”
She was understood to be referring to a report in the Sunday Business Post of September 25th which stated that the research company Amárach Consultants, regularly used by Fine Gael, had been testing negative messages about presidential election candidates.
Fine Gael and Amárach Consultants later declined to comment on the article to The Irish Times.
Ms Davis was also asked yesterday about a report in the Irish Independent that she and her husband Julian Davis were on the board of the charity Social Entrepreneurs Ireland (SEI) when it hired the services of a public relations company, Fleishman Hillard, of which her husband was a board member.
“We had absolutely nothing to do with the awarding of contracts in public relations and communications or in any other area,” she said.
In a separate comment later, Mr Davis said the report was “nonsense” and that he took no part in the SEI discussions which led to the awarding of the PR contract to Fleishman Hillard.
There was “absolutely no conflict of interest”. He said his initial involvement in handling the PR account for Fleishman Hillard had decreased and was “minimal” at this stage.
Ms Davis said that, as president, she would call a series of regional conventions on mental health, living conditions of the elderly, exploitation and abuse of women, literacy and disability.
She would request the Government to bring the office of president under the Freedom of Information Act.
“I would publish an annual report, “with full details of my activities, and detailed income and expenditure accounts for my office and household,” she said.
MAIN POINTS
Convene regional conventions on mental health, problems of the elderly, exploitation of women, literacy and disability.
Sponsor a Citizen’s Award for persons who give “outstanding service to Irish life”.
Begin consultation process with Government on 1916 and other centenaries, North and South.
Request Government to extend Freedom of Information Act to presidency.
Publish annual report with “detailed income and expenditure accounts”.