Pearse Doherty (Sinn Fein)

We should stop saying that foreign direct investment would be wiped out if we vote "No". It did not happen in France when it rejected the EU constitution. Foreign direct investment increased to a level of 10%.

The Minister for Finance has said that a "No" vote would be tantamount to a signal of withdrawal from the European Union. That is a lie. It is untrue and it is scaremongering. I am not the only person saying that. An editorial in an influential newspaper, The Wall Street Journal, on 16 September, stated that the Minister, Deputy Brian Lenihan, was "peddling phantom terrors to scare the Irish people into voting Yes". It further stated that the chief strategy of the Government is preying on fears. That is what The Wall Street Journal stated about this Government's attitude to the Lisbon treaty and to it trying to link it to the economy.