THE SECOND referendum on the Lisbon Treaty will be held in the autumn, Minister for European Affairs Dick Roche said yesterday.
He added that as part of the process of steering its way out of recession Ireland needed to secure its position within the European Union.
Speaking in Berlin to the German Council on Foreign Relations, the Minister said he wanted to deliver the message that Ireland was coming to grips with its problems and taking decisive action to bring the Government’s finances under control, ensure the health of the banking system and improve competitiveness.
“Part of this determined effort to steer Ireland out of recession involves securing our position within the European Union by dealing decisively with the implications of last year’s referendum result and drawing the necessary lessons from it,” said Mr Roche.
He said the treaty provided for a set of sensible reforms to how the EU did its business.
“When we have finalised our legal guarantees to the mutual satisfaction of Ireland and the other member states, which is due to happen by mid-2009, they will represent a comprehensive package of measures designed to address all the key concerns of the Irish people relating to the Lisbon Treaty.
“I have every confidence that we will manage to reach a fully satisfactory outcome to this work,” said Mr Roche.
He added that in his view the legal guarantees related to issues of specific concern in Ireland and would not give rise to problems for others. “The key priority for Ireland is that these guarantees must be legally robust. This is essential if our people’s genuinely-held concerns are to be assuaged and we are to be in a position to successfully ratify the treaty.
“Our partners understand, I believe, that we cannot and will not put the same package to our people later this year. They have shown genuine understanding of our situation and a real willingness to respond positively to the issues we have raised,” he said.
The Minister said that on the basis of these legal guarantees, the Government was committed to seeking ratification of the treaty before the end of the term of the current commission.
“To those who argue that the Union is a hotbed of waste and overregulation, we will point to the Union’s achievements . . . creating the European single market and establishing the euro.
“To those who quibble about the Union’s alleged failures, we will point to the big picture of a Union that is not perfect but that has helped to transform Ireland and to spread peace and prosperity throughout our continent.”
Mr Roche said he wanted the Irish people to vote Yes because they had reached a greater level of understanding . . . and because they were reassured by the guarantees that Ireland would receive in areas of concern to them.
“I want them to vote Yes because they want Ireland to stay at the heart of a Union . . . ratifying Lisbon is the best way for us to do this,” he said.