FIANNA FÁIL: MINISTER FOR Finance Brian Lenihan has pledged to "fight and fight and fight again" to ensure a Yes vote in the Lisbon Treaty referendum.
Despite the latest poll findings, he insisted that "the game is far from over" and that, as shown by last year's general election, "a week is a very long time in a campaign".
At a press conference in Dublin organised by Fianna Fáil, Mr Lenihan said rejecting the treaty would have "direct and immediate economic consequences". A No vote would send out the wrong message "at a time of growing uncertainty."
Asked to comment on the findings of The Irish Times/TNSmrbi poll which showed the No side at 35 per cent, compared to 30 per cent for Yes, Mr Lenihan said: "We're going to fight. I certainly am going to fight and fight and fight again until we get this Yes vote through. It is so essential for this country."
Refusing to accept that the referendum was now lost, he said: "The game is far from over. In a referendum, first of all, the last few days are vital and in some ways the poll should concentrate our minds. I would have thought it was a [ more] even split but again I accept the poll is a snapshot of opinion at a particular time."
He "wasn't totally shocked" by the findings. "I have been talking to a lot of voters and there a number of people who are saying very clearly they will vote No out there, and are not prepared to reason or discuss the issue.
"There are others who express their concerns and if you give an explanation in most cases they are happy with that, and we have to keep doing that between now and the end of the campaign," he said.
Recalling the closing stages of the general election, when Fianna Fáil rallied its support, he said: "As was seen last year, a week is a very long time in a campaign.
"What matters for us is that we bring our message to every part of the country that, in these difficult times, now more than ever Ireland needs a more effective and dynamic EU if it is to create the jobs and growth which our people need."
Outlining the economic arguments for the treaty, he said: "For jobs and growth in the future, we need a Yes vote next Thursday. An effective European Union is not an optional extra for our economic success, it is an essential.
"This is a good treaty for Ireland, it is essential for our future. This is why every major group representing the people who create jobs and opportunities is calling for a Yes vote. This is why the Congress of Trade Unions is calling for a Yes. There is no circumstance in which [ these] people would support a treaty which damaged their own interests."
Mr Lenihan said there would be "no conceivable economic benefit" from a defeat of the treaty, but it would carry direct and immediate economic consequences.
"A No vote will also be a vote against reforming the EU so that it can take collective action on areas such as energy, security which we know is an area of growing concern to all of the countries of Europe today."