The Taoiseach, Mr Ahern, and the Tánaiste, Ms Harney, yesterday published the Government's information booklet on the Nice Treaty, denying claims that it is a biased production designed to secure a Yes vote in the forthcoming referendum.
The booklet, containing the Government's account of what the treaty means, is to be distributed to every home in the State and cost €600,000 to produce. The Green Party and Sinn Féin immediately criticised its publication, saying it ran contrary to the McKenna judgment barring the State from funding partisan referendum campaigning material.
However the Taoiseach and Tánaiste rejected such claims, with Mr Ahern saying it simply contained "clear, factual information". Ms Harney said the Government's purpose in publishing the booklet was "to inform, nothing more and nothing less".
The booklet details the changes the Nice Treaty is designed to bring about and gives short definitions of key terms that feature in the debate including Intergovernmental Conference, Qualified Majority Voting and Enhanced Co-Operation. The booklet is factual, but there was widespread agreement among those who read it yesterday that it was written from the point of view of supporters of the treaty.
Mr Ahern insisted the publication was totally in accord with the McKenna judgment. "This is factual information on what the Treaty of Nice is. It's a summary and an information guide on what is in the full 86-page text."
He said the publication of the booklet marked "another crucial step by the Government in addressing concerns raised by the people of Ireland following the first referendum on the Treaty of Nice . . . The guide provides, in simple and clear terms, factual information on what the treaty of Nice is, what it does and the changes it will introduce."
However, the Green Party leader Mr Trevor Sargent said the Government leaflet was "basically a slick editing and production job designed to portray the Nice Treaty in the best possible light. It is a biased piece of production. What the booklet doesn't say is just as important as what it does say. For example, the Government omits to tell the public how functions of the Western European Union nuclear armed alliance are to be subsumed into the EU after Nice." He accused the Government of undermining the spirit of the McKenna judgment by restricting the ability of the Referendum Commission to present the Yes and No arguments.
Mr Aengus Ó Snodaigh, of Sinn Féin, said the publication was "an abuse of power being paid for by the taxpayers who voted to reject this treaty in the first place".
However, Mr Ahern responded to suggestions that the booklet reflected the pro-Nice view by saying the booklet was simply a summary of the treaty. If a reader felt the booklet suggested the Nice Treaty should be supported, that was only because the treaty itself was objectively deserving of support. He said the campaign last time had been lacklustre.
"The one thing we learned last time was that at the end of the day, people didn't understand it. People didn't have enough information. People who normally vote and take their democratic right to vote seriously just didn't have enough information." Now, he went on, the Government had listened to the views of the public. "We've listened to what the people have said. We have dealt with the issue of neutrality. We have dealt with the issue of accountability to the Dáil by totally changing the way the Dáil deals with European business.
"We have been talking to the employers, farmers, and small business people explaining not only what is in the treaty but in the Seville declaration. The context in which we are asking people to ratify the treaty now is totally different than it was last year."
The Dáil resumes tomorrow for debate on the legislation allowing a second Nice Treaty referendum to be held. The debate will continue on Thursday, and for two days next week. The referendum is expected to take place between mid-October and early November.
Mr Ahern said it was of vital national interest to have the treaty passed.