Irish EU treaty vote - the bumper sticker battle

DUBLIN (Reuters) - Ireland's Fine Gael party want to ban Dublin's taxis from displaying bumper stickers that proclaim which way their drivers' intend to vote in Thursday's referendum on the EU reform treaty.

The main opposition party, which has joined the government in the campaign to support the treaty, has proposed a ban on political slogans being displayed on taxis, arguing they are out of place on "public transport vehicles".

In the lead up to the vote more and more taxis in the Irish capital have worn stickers declaring "I'm voting no".

"If it's not illegal, it's highly inappropriate," senior Fine Gael lawmaker Olivia Mitchell said in a statement.

A 62-year-old Dublin taxi driver, who identified himself as Ronan, said everyone should have the right to express their views, adding he would vote "No" because he did not understand the treaty and did not want to "take a chance on it".

"If I wanted to vote "Yes", would they object to that if I put a sticker on my car with it?," he said.

Ireland is the only one of the EU's 27 member states holding a referendum on the treaty -- meaning country accounting for less than 1 percent of the bloc's 490 million population could derail the pact.

Recent polls show the "No" vote gaining ground.

For more stories on the referendum, visit: here

To have your say, click on: here (Reporting by Andras Gergely; Editing by Matthew Jones)