Libertas back in the game

After a long quiet spell, Libertas is back in full swing in Ireland, where the second referendum on the Lisbon Treaty is looming. Declan Ganley has also rejoined the fight.

Today saw a major attack on the YES campaign, following a cracking article in the Wall Street Journal that ripped apart the fear mongering by the YES campaign.

INTERNATIONAL INVESTORS READ TRUTH ABOUT LISBON WHILE YES SIDE LIE – GANLEY

“3 million global business leaders are reading the truth about the Lisbon Treaty this morning while the people of Ireland pass lamp-posts littered with lies on their way to work” Libertas Leader Declan Ganley has said today.

Mr. Ganley was responding to an editorial in the Wall Street Journal which said that Finance Minister Brian Lenihan was “peddling phantom terrors to scare the Irish people into voting Yes”. The paper also said that “no sane businessman” would see a No to Lisbon as a “vote against Europe”, and that Ireland had “no reason to fear the consequences of a No vote”.

Responding, Mr. Ganley said that it was absolutely clear that the only job saved by the Lisbon Treaty would be Brian Cowen’s:

“It’s a sad day when 3 million global business leaders are told the truth by the world’s most famous business newspaper, while the same number and more of Irish people are having the truth hidden from them”,

“This Treaty has absolutely nothing to do with jobs or the economy. It has everything to do with a fanatical class of deluded people at the top of Irish society who are determined to have their way at any cost.”

“The truth is that despite hanging thousands of bland, misleading posters across the country, and rolling out about a hundred astroturf groups made up of the same small fanatical band of professional Brussels-leeches, the Yes side cannot point to a single job this piece of junk treaty would create”.

“Meanwhile, in the real world, the bible of the international investor is telling its readers the truth. There will be no jobs. Ireland will not be a better place to invest. The Government is telling lies. And No sane businessman agrees with their ideas.”

“So, who will the Irish people believe? The same Government that has brought the country to the edge of an economic cliff, or the 33-time Pulitzer Prize winning newspaper which is read by every serious investor on the planet?”

“Other than Brian Cowen’s, the yes side cannot point to a single job that this treaty will create. And therein lies the answer to the question”

Ends

Where now for Libertas?

After a disappointing election night for Libertas and Declan Ganley's apparent withdrawal from front line politics, many people are questioning the future of Libertas.

I attended a UK get together on Wednesday for candidates and activists, which was quite revealing. Whereas one might have expected gloominess, on the whole people were extremely positive and asking what the next step is. There weren't a lot of answers, but what is clear is that Libertas is going to continue to grow and without the time constraints of an electin to fight immediately, we can do it properly this time.

Discussions are now underway across Europe as to the best way forward, and I am looking forward to Libertas Mk II.

Onwards and upwards!

Declan Ganley looking hopeful

The Times today is showing that Declan Ganley might get elected in the North West region of Ireland, despite many smear attempts in certain sections of the Irish press:

Tallies throughout the sprawling area showed high levels of support for Ganley in several areas, not just his base in Galway. This suggested that he could potentially pull off a shock result and take a seat, possibly at the expense of Pat “The Cope” Gallagher of Fianna Fail.

This would be a fantastic result for Libertas and give us a base to fight the Lisbon Treaty from when the Irish are forced to vote again.

Go Declan!

Libertas still campaigning

While the other parties in the UK are now somewhat quieter, waiting for the European Election results tomorrow night, Libertas is still going. One of the unusual aspects of us being a pan-European party is that the elections take place at different times.

Ireland voted yesterday, and it is looking good for Declan Ganley by all accounts.

Latvia, Malta and Slovakia, and the Czech Republic are all voting today, and we have candidates in each of those countries, and there are yet more elections tomorrow across Europe.

It does bring home the sheer scale of Libertas and the feeling that we are part of a much wider movement for change.

Blears resigns to spend more time with her constituents

Today Hazel Blears has gone, following Jacqui Smith, announcing 'I am glad to be going home to the people who matter the most to me: the people of Salford.' Aside from the sickening insincerity of it, what this really indicates that she is going to spend the next few months doing nothing but campaigning in her constituency to try to hold on to her seat when Labour collapses at the next General Election.

But what does this mean for the EU elections? Normally a senior minister resigning just before an election would be seen as catastrophic news, but this time, with two of them going (and maybe more), it is just lumped in with the rest of the bad news for Gordon Brown. 

Caroline Flint, the Europe Minister, is widely reported to be the next likely minister to quit.

So just how bad is it all going to get for Gordon tomorrow? The polls are putting Labour on 16-22%,  and I think that they are going to end up under 20%; Labour voters simply aren't going to turn out in numbers as the bad news keeps on landing. This leaves a massive swing vote available in areas of the country that should bring about good results for smaller parties like Libertas, the Greens and UKIP.

The writing's on the wall

Libertas managed to grab the attention of Londoners last night with a series of huge messages projected on to the side of London buildings. They look really impressive.

Growing Support for Libertas

With just two days to go before the EU elections, support for Libertas, the pan-European reform party is growing rapidly in the media. As the shine comes off UKIP as the alternative vote, journalists across the board are taking a fresh look at Libertas, the party that took on Brussels and won.

In just the last day or so, the Daily Mail included a glowing piece by Peter Oborne and then the Sun joined in with an endorsement by Trevor Kavanagh and a further compliment in the editorial.

Here are some of the highlights:

“A better bet is Libertas, the new party that sensationally humiliated established political parties in Ireland last year. In a brilliant campaign, backed by The Sun, Libertas turned a near-certain YES into a bombshell NO on the Constitution.”
- Trevor Kavanagh, The Sun

“Many voters are tempted by the increasingly credible Libertas.”
-The Sun Says column

“At a time of moral squalor and decay in Westminster and Brussels, both Libertas and Jury Team offer voters a hugely refreshing - and, perhaps, the only proper - alternative on Thursday.”
- Peter Oborne, Daily Mail