FINE GAEL PUBLICITY PLAN:MORE THAN €300,000 will be spent on the Lisbon referendum campaign by Fine Gael, the main Oppostion party said yesterday.
The party’s campaign will combine outdoor media and postering with intensive door to door canvassing.
Fine Gael has published 20,000 posters with its Yes to Europe, Yes to Lisbon slogans. The party will also use the “Yes to Jobs” and “Yes to Recovery” message during the campaign.
Yesterday, party leader Enda Kenny defended the use of his image in the billboards. Political parties were criticised last year for allowing their representatives erect personalised posters.
The party will also take out online advertisements as well as prominently featuring its Lisbon campaign on its website.
Fine Gael director of elections, Wicklow TD Billy Timmins, said the campaign would be positive and vibrant.
He said the core of the campaign would be its canvassing. All its elected representatives had been asked to canvass.
In addition, a series of regional meetings had been organised around the country.
The campaign will be spearheaded by Mr Kenny who has set 20 days aside in his diary for a nationwide canvass.
Mr Timmins also said that the party’s four MEPs as well as regional directors, Tipperary South TD Tom Hayes and Sligo-North Leitrim TD John Perry would also be taking leading roles.
Mr Timmins said he did not want to spend the campaign rebutting claims from the other side, which he said was a mistake that Fine Gael and other parties had made last year.
He emphasised the importance of face to face engagement with people in their own homes.
“A pragmatic reality is that it’s very difficult to engage with people on Europe. We need to knock on doors to meet people and explain the benefits,” he said.
He said that thousands of party activists would be “knocking on doors” from now until polling day on October 2nd.
FG’s Lucinda Creighton said the party would not allow itself to be sidelined by unfounded claims as it was last year.
The Fine Gael TD for Dublin South East said that opponents of the treaty tend to “nitpick” the document and never relay positive messages.
