Burke gets it wrong on Lisbon

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According to RTÉ, Colm Burke MEP (FG - Ireland South) wants us to vote on Lisbon Treaty in April. But how can we??? The European Council have not agreed the text of the "necessary guarantees" that will, supposedly, get us to change our minds on the treaty.

Colm seams to be showing the effects of working in Brussels, you lose your connection to the people and only want to get your name in the paper, especially considering it is an election.

While Burke has a point when he says "It is not alarmist to state that were we not inside the Union our economic plight would mirror that of Iceland, with double digit interest rates and reliance on an International Monetary Fund bail-out"

But then he goes wrong again by suggesting the Cownen, Kenny and Gilmore should work together, but it has been stated before that, that shouldnt be done in public!

While ideas about Lisbon catch headlines, especially on a Sunday, but sometimes I wish people would think before they speak to the media.

Ireland South will be a tough battle for everyone and making suggestions that are easily rebuffed is not the way to get your name out there.

Best of luck though to Colm Burke and Sean Kelly though in the European Elections.

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Two FG Candidates for Ireland South?

So Sean Kelly, former President of the GAA has thrown his hat in the ring for a place on the Fine Gael ticket in Ireland South, but can Fine Gael win two seats in Ireland South?

At the last election in 2004 the quota was 121,068. Fine Gael's Simon Coveney got 118,937 first preferences votes. The combined Fianna Fail first preference vote (Brian Crowley and Gerard Collins) was 198,670 and they failed to get two candidates elected.

This strategy was tried in both Ireland East and Ireland North-West in the last elections. It worked well in Ireland East where it succeded in getting both Mairead McGuinness and Avril Doyle elected, but it failed in Ireland North West where Madeleine Taylor-Quinn ended up acting as a vote sweeper for Jim Higgins.

What will be the strategy for Ireland South though? Will it be to be successful like Mairead and Avril or that one of the candidates will act as a vote sweeper.

This will all be decided by Fine Gael members in a meeting after Christmas. I personally am torn over which way I will vote or argue for. Looking at the numbers it dosent seam vaible but when you look back at the results from 1999 in Leinster the idea of running two candidates seams to be a non runner as between Avril and Alan Gills Fine Gael managed only to get Avril elected at the cost of Gillis losing his seat. Is that what will happen in 09, Burke will lose the seat to Kelly? But then in 2004 we win both seats in Ireland East, can that be repeated in 2009 in Ireland South?

It will take me a long time to come to a conclusion on this and would appreciate other peoples thoughts and comments!

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I have listed the other candidates here

Hairdressers key to treaty vote

Via The Irish Examiner (Full Story)

Well done to Irish MEP, Colm Burke who has come up with an excellent idea to spread information on the Lisbon Treaty. He has decided to send information to hairdressers after his own experience in one in Cork. Teh hairdresser was told that the treaty would "bring in a new regime about the number of children she could have". I have read the treaty and there is nothing in it on that. He was also handed a leaflet that claimed (not in the hairdressers) that "everyone would have to pay an extra 20% tax to the EU" which again is completely false.

The no campaign is stooping to low after low. Libertas also, in the Irish Examiner, misquoted EU Commissioner Margot Wallström in a letter, which she has blogged about.

What other untruths apart from the usual, Neutrality/European Army, are we going to hear. I'm thinking of compiling a list.