The Tánaiste has accused "hard left-wing parties" of "isolationist and rejectionist" politics and of offering Irish workers nothing more than P45s.
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But the Workers' Party, named earlier by Ms Harney, responded by saying Ms Harney was involved in "a smear tactic she has obviously learned from her mentor Margaret Thatcher."
Speaking at the announcement of the creation of 142 new technology jobs in Cork Ms Harney urged people to go out and vote Yes on the Nice Treaty and reject the politics of extremists.
". . .the hard left-wing parties who oppose Nice do so because they are fundamentally hostile to international trade and investment," she said.
"The Workers' Party, Joe Higgins and Sinn Féin are hostile to the international companies that account directly for at least 140,000 jobs in Ireland today.
"Many more jobs result as a spin-off from international companies trading from an Irish base. If these left-wing parties had their way they'd drive those jobs out of Ireland. They'd impose high taxes and crippling regulation on all business, international and local, small and large."
Ms Harney also accused the "hard-left" of offering Irish workers "nothing but P45s and continued poverty and misery to the people of Eastern Europe. The hard-left parties who oppose Nice offer nothing but P45s to thousands of Irish workers," she said.
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MsHarney: "hard left-wing"
parties are "isolationist and rejectionist" |
"And just as they used to speak up for the oppressiveCommunist regimes they offer nothing but continued poverty and misery to the peoples of Eastern Europe with their wild anti-enterprise policies," she added.
But the Workers' Party said Ms Harney was severely rattled over thereferendum.
The party's president Mr Seán Garland said Ms Harney's criticism this morning was "a smear tactic she has obviously learned from her mentor Margaret Thatcher."
Mr Garland added the Tánaiste was obviously rattled by the professionalism and logic of those who are campaigning for a No vote.
"The Government, and Deputy Harney in particular, have no answers to the many pertinent questions we have raised and her only response is a continuous barrage of abuse," said Mr Garland.
"It is clear our campaign is having an effect and the Government's morale is plummeting as voters have started to realise the real implications of the Treaty of Nice."
Among those implications, according to Mr Garland,isthat Ireland will loose the veto in 30 new areas, the dominance of the major powers under the new Treaty, the rapid militarisation of the EU and the creation of a two-tier union where the smaller countries and new entrants will have membership under lesser terms.
"We would like to debate these issues with Mary Harneyif she'd only come off her pedestal," said Mr Garland.