The Cabinet will discuss the holding of a stand-alone referendum on the Treaty of Amsterdam when it meets next week, in order to maximise public interest in the issues involved. Initially, Ministers favoured holding the referendum in March, in tandem with Dail by-elections for Limerick East and Dublin North, but the Government is now understood to be reviewing the situation.
Consideration is also being given to the manner in which the referendum may be funded, so as to accord with the Supreme Court judgment in the McKenna case.
Before Christmas the leader of the Labour Party, Mr Ruairi Quinn, suggested that the referendum on the Amsterdam Treaty should be postponed until after formal decisions on currency matters and Economic and Monetary Union were taken by the member-governments on May 1st.
Marking the 25th anniversary of Ireland's accession to the EU, Mr Ahern spoke of the period as "a deeply-enriching experience for Ireland in political and material terms". Equal pay legislation, environment protection policy, consumer protection law, competition law and social and cultural policies had all been influenced by decisions at European level, he said.
Membership had enabled Ireland to attain unprecedented levels of prosperity, and structural funding had contributed to the quality of roads and sanitary services. The CAP had also helped to restructure agriculture.
The European Union would impact in an even more positive way on the lives of Irish people in the future, the Taoiseach said. "The Treaty of Amsterdam will allow Europe to address the most direct concerns of citizens in the areas of employment, crime and the environment, public health, consumer protection, social exclusion and non-discrimination."
Economic and Monetary Union would place Europe firmly at the centre of the global economy, Mr Ahern said.