THE DIFFICULTY faced by the Government in getting the Lisbon Treaty passed in a second referendum has been underlined by its own research which found that a significant number of people did not understand what they were voting on last June.
An opinion poll commissioned by the Government found that 42 per cent of people cited a lack of knowledge, information or understanding of the treaty as the reason for voting No. It was by far the most significant reason given for voting against the treaty.
The poll also showed that a third of voters believed that conscription into a European army and an end to the country's ban on abortion were part of the Lisbon Treaty.
Over 40 per cent thought the treaty would end Ireland's corporation tax regime.
The positive news for the Government, and the main Opposition parties who campaigned for a Yes vote, was that 70 per cent of people believed the EU was a good thing and 60 per cent thought Ireland's interests were best pursued by remaining fully involved.
Minister for Foreign Affairs Micheál Martin said, in response to the poll findings, that the Government was considering all the options open to it, including the possibility of ratifying parts of the treaty through the Oireachtas.
He said the Government would have to study the legal issues arising from this option, while also refusing to rule out the prospect of holding a second Lisbon referendum.
The opinion poll and focus group research, carried out for the Government by Millward Brown IMS during the summer, has highlighted the scale of the task involved in trying to explain the Lisbon Treaty to the electorate.
The research confirmed that the biggest No vote came from the lower income group where 65 per cent voted against the treaty.
There was also a clear No majority among women with 56 per cent against, while in age terms, the highest No vote, 59 per cent, came from the 25 to 34-year-old category.
After a lack of knowledge about the treaty, the other main reasons given for voting No were the fear of domination by large countries, 13 per cent; a bad deal for Ireland, 8 per cent; and lack of confidence in the Government, 6 per cent.
A loss of sovereignty was cited by 5 per cent and the loss of an Irish commissioner by 4 per cent. The answers were unprompted.
Immigration did not emerge as a significant reason for voting No in the spontaneous responses, but the pollsters said it was clear from the data and focus group research that No voters viewed immigration considerably less positively than Yes voters.
A majority of people felt that Ireland's influence in Europe had not been affected by the rejection of the treaty and a similar number felt it would not affect foreign investment here.
Speaking at the launch of the survey, Mr Martin accepted that the Government had failed to run an effective referendum campaign and he said there was a need to communicate about Europe much better to the public.
The Minister also said that Ireland would not be able to provide its European partners with a definitive solution to the problem created by the referendum defeat at next month's EU summit.
"It is far too early to be prescriptive on the future," said Mr Martin, who announced the Government would shortly begin a national consultation exercise in the Oireachtas to explore all options open to it to ratify the treaty.