The results of an opinion poll published yesterday indicate an increasing number of Irish voters plan to say Yes to the Nice Treaty when they vote next Saturday.
Some 41 per cent of voters questioned last Thursday for a Sunday Independent/IMS poll, the results of which were published yesterday, said they would vote Yes.
This is an increase on two weeks ago, when 37 per cent of voters questioned for an Irish Times/MRBI opinion poll said they would vote Yes.
The latest poll, however, found 27 per cent of voters plan to reject the Nice Treaty, which is up 2 per cent since the Irish Times/MRBI poll.
Some 24 per cent in the weekend poll were still undecided on how they should vote, while a further 8 per cent said they did not intend to vote.
The poll found the main issue concerning voters who intend to reject Nice is neutrality, while the main issue influencing the voting intentions of those who plan to vote Yes is employment.
Issues to do with the Government's handling of the economy and the Flood tribunal interim report were far down the list of concerns of voters on both sides.
The poll was carried out before revelations that the chief spokesman for the No to Nice campaign, Mr Justin Barrett, had close links with an extreme right-wing party in Germany which the authorities believe has "Nazi characteristics".
Satisfaction ratings of the political parties were also examined. The poll found support for Fianna Fáil has slipped four percentage points to 39 per cent since a poll before the general election in May. Fine Gael slipped one percentage point to 17 per cent, Labour remained unchanged at 10 per cent, the Progressive Democrats were up one percentage point to 3 per cent, the Green Party was up two points to 6 per cent while Sinn Féin was up six points to 9 per cent.
The satisfaction rating of the Taoiseach, Mr Ahern, has plummeted, however. It has fallen to 43 per cent from 68 per cent in May. Some 58 per cent of those polled said they believed he had misled the Dáil in his explanation of his decision to appoint Mr Ray Burke to Cabinet in 1997.
Satisfaction with the Tánaiste, Ms Harney, has also fallen, but less dramatically. It has dropped to 52 per cent from 59 per cent in May.
The Sinn Féin leader, Mr Gerry Adams, enjoys the same leadership satisfaction rating as Ms Harney.
The Fine Gael leader, Mr Enda Kenny, registered a 31 per cent satisfaction rating compared to the 30 per cent approval rating for his predecessor, Mr Michael Noonan, in May, while Mr Trevor Sargent of the Greens increased his satisfaction rating to 44 per cent.