SINN FÉIN AND SOCIALISTS:SINN FÉIN MEP Mary Lou McDonald and the Socialist Party's Joe Higgins both caleld for Fresh EU treaty negotiations yesterday.
Speaking on the fringes of the European summit, the two politicians held separate press events - with largely the same message. No means no, they said; the treaty is dead and ratification should not proceed.
Cóir's anti-treaty message was also delivered here by their spokesman, Richard Greene.
Ms McDonald said it was wrong to characterise what had happened as a political crisis but, she said, a political crisis would arise if the public clearly saw that the "European elite" was determined to ignore the people's will and to press ahead with the treaty as it stood.
She insisted that "another deal is possible" and emphasised the "sensible, achievable" programme of demands that Sinn Féin said could be the basis of a new treaty.
Speaking after her press conference, she acknowledged that some of the demands related to opt-outs or clarifications specifically for Ireland, in terms of the familiar strategic issues raised by the campaign. But she said that an important part of their concern was also the direction of European policy as a whole.
Changes which affected Ireland alone would not be sufficient, she said.
There would have to be new clauses on social policy, on services and defence, and she insisted that in any future EU military structures Ireland would have to retain its place in decision-making and a veto on operations.
Mr Higgins, who confirmed that he would be contesting next year's European elections, said that while the Sinn Féin list touched many of the concerns shared by the Socialist Party, "no way will they be granted".
The purpose of the treaty was to pursue the neo-liberal project of deregulation and privatisation, and there was no way that the sort of assurances working people wanted would be met by the EU's conservative governments, said the former TD.
"If the €80 billion poured into arms was put into social services and healthcare, that would be another matter. But it won't happen," he said, adding that it was unlikely his party would support a revised treaty.
Cóir, said that what was needed was "a new direction, not a rehashed treaty". It argued that any new document should be put to all the people of Europe for a vote. It should substantially shift power back from the commission to member states and should leave decisions on workers' rights, taxation and immigration policy to national governments.
