
Coir, the extreme Catholic group, has came under attack for scaring older people into believing that euthanasia will become law in Ireland if the Lisbon Treaty is adopted in next month's referendum.
A new Coir ad and poster campaign launched yesterday claimed that Lisbon effectively provides a backdoor for the introduction of euthanasia to Ireland. And Coir spokeswoman Niamh Ui Bhriain said the treaty would give EU courts the right to decide on abortion and euthanasia.
But last night, Senator Phil Prendergast, the Labour Party spokesperson on older people, accused Coir of "scaremongering" and called on the body to desist from its cynical campaign of inventing "misrepresentations . . . and downright lies".
He added: "The last thing older people need is to be subject to a campaign by a shadowy organisation designed to scare and confuse them in the run-up to the referendum."