The assistant director of Fianna Fail's Amsterdam Treaty campaign has warned voters not to be "swayed by wild claims from anti-Europeans". Mr Tom Kitt TD said the No campaigners had raised unfounded claims about security, defence and neutrality. He maintained that the treaty gave Ireland a veto on measures that would change neutrality.
"All the major political parties and social partners support the Amsterdam Treaty because, if agreed, it will allow the European Union to act more effectively in many areas, in tackling unemployment and crime and providing greater consumer protection and a cleaner environment," Mr Kitt said in a statement yesterday.
The ATGWU has called for a No vote, saying that this could force the Government to seek more assistance from the EU during the first years of the single currency.
The union's regional secretary, Mr Mick O'Reilly, said yesterday that the loss of the State's national currency and the power to set interest rates "means we will be helpless against speculators, currency markets and inflationary pressures.
"Already commentators have been warning that workers' wages may have to be cut if sterling weakens against the new euro," he said. "This is an important issue in firms that trade with Britain."
He said that when negotiating the Amsterdam Treaty, the Government had "done nothing to secure safety measures for workers' living standards.
Instead they opposed proposals to implement a European jobs initiative and extend the EU's social policy."