Both sides in the fiscal treaty referendum are using the final hours before the onset of the broadcast moratorium on referendum content tomorrow afternoon to persuade the electorate.
Speaking tonight on RTÉ’s Prime Time Labour’s Joan Burton encouraged people not to send out the “wrong signal” in Thursday’s vote saying the country has done very well for 40 years out of EU structural funds.
She was joined on the programme in calling for a Yes vote by Fianna Fáil’s Timmy Dooley who said if the country doesn’t learn to balance its budgets it will become an inhibiter to security of the euro.
On the No side Sinn Féin’s Mary Lou McDonald said people are getting absolutely “hammered” economically and with current unemployment numbers rising it is not the "stuff of stability".
Clare Daly of the United Left Alliance said there is no precedent for an economy to grow on the back of austerity and dismissed fears that multinationals would leave the country should there be a No vote by saying the companies will “invest here if they get a return”.
Earlier Fianna Fáil leader Micheal Martin urged the electorate not to use Thursday’s fiscal treaty referendum as a means to show anger towards the Government.
Mr Martin, who was canvassing in Cork city today, said that people were angry and that he believed a significant proportion of those voting No were voting against Government policy.
"My message is that the treaty is not a referendum on the government - and people should reserve their position on the government until the local elections or the next general election - voting No just because you are angry in itself doesn't advance your position.”
Sinn Féin today accused the Government of running an entirely negative referendum campaign and said it was a “very positive thing to vote No to a treaty that isn’t good for you, or your family or your community”.
Party leader Gerry Adams said the Yes side was attempting to suggest that Ireland would “fall off the end of the world” in the event of a No vote.
The United Left Alliance accused the Government of lying through its teeth over the shape of the State’s finances and that losing access to European funds would mean the Government would not have to repay bank debt.
“Obviously, if the EU cut off funding to us we would not be making those re-payments and the actual gap between income and expenditure would then only be €3.1 billion,” he said.
“This is a gap that could easily be filled and more by increasing income tax on those earning over €150,000 per year and by imposing a modest wealth tax on the wealth and assets of the wealthiest 5 per cent of the population.”
Separately, Taoiseach Enda Kenny has said he will not be pushed around by Sinn Féin which has accused him of running scared from a TV debate.
On his way into this morning’s Cabinet meeting, Mr Kenny insisted he made the right decision not to debate with Mr Adams.
“I am not going to be shoved around by Sinn Féin,” he said. “I am not going to give a platform to somebody who I don’t regard as the leader of the Opposition to propagate what are blatant lies and hypocritical assertions.”
Minister for Enterprise Bruton rejected the suggestion that Mr Kenny had declined live debates because of fears that a mistake or gaffe might have an adverse effect on the Yes campaign.
“The reality is that twice every week for the past six weeks, the Taoiseach has been answering questions [in the Dáil] from those sources [Sinn Fein leader Gerry Adams] about the treaty,” he said.
Mr Kenny addressed the American Chamber of Commerce in Dublin this afternoon on foreign direct investment.
Mr Martin criticised both Mr Kenny for failing to debate with Mr Adams and Mr Adams for failing to debate with him. He was particularly scathing of Sinn Fein’s position on the treaty and he accused them of cynically exploiting the issue for party gain.
"I think there’s a lot of cynicism in the Sinn Fein position - I don’t think their position was an honest one but I do think they do make a calculation that by going No, they get higher profile and they can put their candidates out there because of the 50/50 rule on balance,” he said.