The Green Party has challenged the leader of the Progressive Democrats to engage in a public debate about its election promises.
Greens director of elections John Gormley said he was willing to debate the Green's promises and costings on television or radio with PD leader Michael McDowell "anytime", accusing the Tánaiste of "avoiding" him for the last five years.
Speaking at the unveiling of his party's election manifesto in Dublin today, Mr Gormley said he thought Michael McDowell was "feeling threatened" because of the competition posed by Green candidates in constituencies where the PDs have had a strong footing.
With 44 candidates running for election this year, the party will have a candidate in each of the country's 43 constituencies for the first time in its history.
Mr Gormley said: "All the reports from the constituencies confirm that the tide is in at the moment for the Green Party. The response on the doorsteps is very positive and encouraging and will result in seat gains for the party".
Outlining their election manifesto today, the Greens gave voters seven commitments which it claimed are "prudent but fair".
These include promises to reduce VAT, develop eight new light rail systems in the country's cities, draw up "proper" planning legislation that would ensure the development of 10,000 social houses each year, and tackle climate change.
Party Leader Trevor Sargent said it was "the only party to set out an honest and prudent tax package" and said the "mud-slinging campaign" it had endured had "distorted what the Green party is about".
He said the Greens would honour all contracts signed under the Transport 21 initiative but would seek to renegotiate a different route for the controversial M3 motorway, planned to run close by the Hill of Tara site in Co Meath.
In February the Tánaiste attacked the Greens' environmental policies at the PD annual conference when he asked delegates to imagine Trevor Sergeant as Minister for the Environment or Minister for Transport, saying "he would be more like minister for ending the motorway programme".
Outlining their election manifesto today, the Greens gave voters seven commitments that it claimed are "prudent but fair".