Pro-treaty civil society group set up by Pat Cox

A CIVIL society group has been formed by seasoned referendum campaigners Pat Cox and Brendan Halligan to campaign for a Yes vote in the fiscal treaty.

Mr Cox, the former European Parliament president, and Mr Halligan, chairman of the Institute of International and European Affairs, will next week formally launch the Alliance for Ireland.

The pro-treaty group evolved from the Ireland for Europe organisation, which was the biggest, most active civil society group on the Yes side in the Lisbon Treaty referendum.

The core members of Alliance for Ireland, “plus a lot of young people”, have met at least once a week since the need for a referendum was announced. The group will meet daily from today, said Mr Halligan.

As campaigning intensified over the weekend, a United Left Alliance (ULA) conference heard that a No vote could “fatally undermine” the Government and shorten its lifespan dramatically.

Socialist Party MEP Paul Murphy told about 200 delegates at the conference in Dublin that the ULA could win a “big prize” in the upcoming referendum.

He said a No vote would demonstrate the Government had “no mandate for austerity” and would represent a rejection, by the electorate, of Coalition policies.

“It will probably fatally undermine . . . and dramatically shorten the lifetime of this Government. It also is a massive opportunity for the ULA to really develop its profile as a clear anti-capitalist and socialist alternative,” he said.

A No vote would also give a “massive boost” to people opposing water and housing charges, he added. He said the ULA would have competition on the No side from Sinn Féin.

People Before Profit TD Richard Boyd Barrett said the ULA was part of an “international resistance to the austerity agenda”. He said a cartel of “super-wealthy” individuals was trying to make working people pay for the financial crisis.

Mr Boyd Barrett said the ULA did not only talk about opposition and alternatives, but was practically involved in supporting working people. The ULA includes Socialist Party and People Before Profit politicians, five of whom have Dáil seats.

The Government parties held a press conference at the weekend featuring Labour’s director of elections and Minister for Social Protection Joan Burton and her Fine Gael counterpart Simon Coveney, Minister for Agriculture.

Ms Burton said a No vote “might bewilder overseas investors”, adding that it would be “foolish” for Ireland not to have access to additional funding if required. “Why reject a safety net or insurance policy in relation to accessing funds?” she said.

Ms Burton said, as Ireland made what she described as an “orderly exit” from the IMF bailout deal, it needed “friendly support”. In relation to the prospect of being able to access ESM funding, she added: “I suppose, in a way, you might call it a safety net or water wings.”

She said Labour and Fine Gael would be working to ensure the public got the information they required about the treaty.

“People will meet somebody from Fine Gael, somebody from Labour, who will talk to them about the treaty,” she said.

Fine Gael public representatives from across the country gathered in Dublin for an intense briefing on the referendum on Saturday.

Mr Coveney said the party leadership wanted to equip them with all the information they needed to canvass in support of the treaty.

An opinion poll at the weekend found 47 per cent of likely voters intended to vote Yes in the referendum on May 31st. The Red C poll for the Sunday Business Post said 35 per cent would vote No, while 18 per cent were undecided.