GREEN PARTY:THE GREEN Party was "a good each-way bet" for voters because it could either contribute its experience to a new government or play a "constructive" role in opposition, former communications minister Eamon Ryan has said.
Claiming other parties were copying the Greens’ ideas on the economy, Mr Ryan, a candidate in Dublin South, said: “They talk the talk but they don’t have the detail right.”
Addressing the party’s last news conference of the campaign, in the Adam Suite of Dublin’s Shelbourne Hotel, former minister for the environment John Gormley stressed the importance of giving Green candidates a number one vote.
“This is undoubtedly an historic election. We are going through an unprecedented economic downturn. The Green Party called for this election to give the Irish people an opportunity to make a decision on the future of this country,” he said.
“And our key message to the voters today is this: that if you want quality candidates elected to Dáil Éireann, be it in government or be it in opposition, give the Green Party candidate your number one vote.
“I can’t stress this enough. We need your number one vote, if you want quality representation. And I’m surrounded here by quality candidates. We know from local opinion polls that we are in the fight for the last seat in these key constituencies,” he said.
Mr Gormley and colleague Ciarán Cuffe criticised remarks on Twitter by one of the Green leader’s Fine Gael rivals in Dublin South East, Lucinda Creighton, who said she had supported the Civil Partnership Bill but was opposed to same-sex marriage.
Mr Cuffe said: “Within Fine Gael there is a conservative streak and we would reach out to the liberal elements within Fine Gael.
“I’d look back to the party of Garret FitzGerald, of Gemma Hussey, of Mary Banotti, and I think some of those values have been lost in a move to the right, and I certainly saw that in Lucinda Creighton’s remarks.”
Mr Gormley said: “As far as we are concerned, the Civil Partnership was a step in the right direction but we want to go all of the way. You can’t have half-equality, which is what, I think, Fine Gael are granting people.
“We are a party that stands on those liberal values, on social values. We will continue to campaign on that and I think those remarks from a constituency colleague are regrettable, because they are discriminatory.”
In response last night Ms Creighton said: “If the Green Party believes Civil Partnership is conservative and inadequate, why didn’t they legislate for gay marriage when they were in Government?
“It is not recent news that Fine Gael don’t support gay marriage: we never have.”