Austerity.ie website launched…

…This looks like an excellent initiative.

· Austeritytreaty.ie website launched – giving true story about impact of Treaty’s lives in contrast to government site

· “Austerity Treaty explained” pamphlet by Paul Murphy MEP launched

Speaking at the press conference launching the austeritytreaty.ie website and his pamphlet on “Austerity Treaty explained: how it undermines democracy & institutionalises austerity” today, Paul Murphy commented:

“In contrast to the taxpayer funded government website, the austeritytreaty.ie website gives the true story about the impact of this Treaty on people’s lives. In a series of short videos, the key features of the Treaty such as the austerity required, the fact that it is a bondholders’ Treaty are explained as well as answering the scaremongering arguments of the government.

“The website also turns attention to the crucial democratic arguments against this Treaty. It transfers yet more powers to the unelected and effectively unaccountable European Commission and enables countries in ‘Excessive Deficit Procedures’ to be effectively placed into administration with their budgets written by the Commission and Council. Also, by writing the structural deficit target into law, it is an attempt to remove people’s right to choose an alternative to austerity policies.

“The pamphlet ‘Austerity Treaty explained: how it undermines democracy & institutionalises austerity’ has already sold extremely well at public meetings right across the country. There is a thirst out there for an explanation of what this Treaty will mean for people’s lives and a strong distrust of the government’s arguments. I have spoken at a number of meetings of the Campaign Against Household and Water Taxes about this Treaty in the last week and everywhere, large number of anti-household tax activists are signing up to actively campaign against this Treaty for the next three weeks.”