Gormley attacks lobbyists as treaty row flares
His comments came in advance of plans by all Green Party TDs and Senators to issue a collective statement in favour of a 'yes' vote this week.
Mr Gormley was scathing about attacks by Declan Ganley, the president of anti-treaty group Libertas, who last week binned a copy of the Green Party manifesto outside Government Buildings.
"So, for Mr Ganley, I think it is from Libertas, who are making these comments -- they are a right-wing group who have a totally different agenda, particularly in relation to the Charter of Fundamental Rights, which I have always supported.
"I have always supported the Charter of Fundamental Rights and I would like to hear what Mr Ganley and his people say about that."
He said the Green Party will decide its stance on the crucial EU treaty at a delegate conference in the Mansion House in Dublin next Saturday -- though he refused to predict the possible outcome.
"I would never say I am confident -- but I am advocating a 'yes' vote. But I don't know -- we require a two-thirds majority and at this stage I wouldn't like to pre-empt in any way what the debate will be or what the outcome will be," he added.
Criticised
The Environment Minister has been criticised by Libertas for deciding that the Referendum Commission will simply encourage people to vote on the EU Reform Treaty rather than carrying out its previous task of publicising the Yes and No' arguments.
The group is spending more than €100,000 to distribute its own information leaflets to nearly 1.5 million households.
Mr Gormley denied that the Green party had reversed its policy on EU treaties since it had entered into government.
"That would imply that we have to put policy in stone -- we were very clear in relation to this matter from the very outset.
"We would look at each treaty on its particular merits -- we did not comment on this particular treaty. We said we would wait to see what was in the treaty and that is what we have done."
Yesterday, Labour party TD Joe Costello called on the Government to publish the wording of the forthcoming referendum.
- Ralph Riegel and Michael Brennan
