THE GOVERNMENT:THE GOVERNMENT does not expect to have a solution to offer its EU partners by October to the problems caused by the rejection of the Lisbon Treaty, Minister for Foreign Affairs Micheál Martin said in Brussels yesterday.
He was commenting on reports that other EU leaders were hoping for an Irish solution to emerge in time for the next meeting of the European Council in October.
"Obviously the council meeting in October will be an opportunity to make a progress report, but I would not anticipate solutions by October.
"That very much depends on the analysis and the outcome of engagement and contacts between now and then. We will certainly be exploring options and ideas," Mr Martin told a press conference in advance of last night's dinner at which prime ministers and foreign ministers aired their views.
Asked if he expected that he would get a hard time from his EU colleagues, the Minister said: "There is no question of us getting it in the neck; there never has been."
Mr Martin added that there was an appreciation of the realpolitik of the position by our European partners.
"Europe has been through things like this in the past," he added.
The Minister denied that the Government's tactic was to play a waiting game and to drag things out for as long as possible.
"We are not playing for time. We are solution driven," said Mr Martin.
"We just don't have a ready-made solution. We are exploring every avenue to ensure that Ireland remains at the heart of Europe."
The Minister said that there had been constructive engagement with the president of the European Commission, Jose Manuel Barroso, at a meeting yesterday morning which also involved Taoiseach Brian Cowen.
He emphasised the need for a comprehensive analysis of the reasons why a majority of people had voted No in last week's referendum, but he said that would not take place until the Government had received the full data from a Eurobarometer poll taken in the immediate aftermath of the decision.
Commenting on some of the initial findings of that poll, he said that it was clear that women were concerned about the issue of defence and military neutrality.
Mr Martin said that he was very concerned about the number of young people who had voted No in the referendum.
"What that may indicate is that we have a lost generation in terms of engagement with Europe and that is something that concerns me. This seems to be the case not just in Ireland but across Europe."
He also expressed regret at the overall negativity of the No campaign and said that it was based on the false premise that the EU was somehow "out to get us" or "waiting in the long grass" to impose something on the Irish people.
The Minister said that the Irish experience of the EU over 35 years had not been about vetoes and conflict with our partners in qualified majoring votes but, on the contrary, it had involved building relationships and friendships and making progress through engagement.
Asked about the Sinn Féin proposals for a renegotiation of the Lisbon Treaty, Mr Martin said that "they have put forward in my view a document that is unattainable".
Mr Martin said that at last night's dinner, the Taoiseach intended to share the results of his analysis of the referendum outcome and make the point that the decision of the Irish people would have to be respected while equally respecting the right of the other member states to reach their own position on the treaty.