O'Rourke supports Oireachtas vote on parts of Lisbon

ELEMENTS OF the Lisbon Treaty should be passed by legislation in the Oireachtas with the rest being put to referendum at some distant time in the future, Fianna Fáil TD and former minister Mary O'Rourke told the Humbert Summer School in Ballina, Co Mayo yesterday.

Opposing the notion that the treaty as it stands could be put to another referendum, Ms O'Rourke said: "It's both foolish and intellectually lazy to say, 'We'll have another vote and this time they'll vote Yes.'"

She continued: "I have mental pictures of mandarins in Brussels or Luxembourg or wherever - and France, who have the presidency now - talking to their colleagues here in Stephen's Green in Dublin and saying, 'Let's give it another try, let's dress up this part of it and that part of it.'

"Well, I have news for you: no matter what way it is dressed-up or undressed, another referendum is not going to work, not in the near future or even medium-term future. How can one say: 'The will of the people is sovereign, let's have another vote.'

"They've spoken: they said No. And whether they've spoken on erroneous grounds or on misjudgments or whatever, they have said it and I don't see how you can turn around and say: 'No, I don't agree with what you've said, we're going to give you another whirl on the merry-go-round.'"

Stressing she was giving a personal view which was not party policy, she added: "I feel there are parts contained in the Lisbon Treaty which can be effected by legislation."

By the same token, there were parts of the treaty that would require a referendum: "And we can leave that to one side for quite a long time."

Fine Gael Senator Frances Fitzgerald said research showed that women voted against Lisbon by a larger percentage than men and she asked how the EU "could find itself so disconnected from women".

"Was it the perception that the EU helped women get more rights than our own Government and in return we would vote for whatever was put in front of us, regardless of whether or not the contents were communicated clearly?"

Ms Fitzgerald said the Yes campaign worked to secure the support of many groups such as farmers and workers but "little effort was put into securing the support of women".

On the issue of a second referendum, she said any proposal for a re-run should be accompanied by "full communication and debate which will include and address the concerns of women".

Ms Fitzgerald said: "I have been struck by the comments of some women that, while they voted Yes this year, that they would view as profoundly anti-democratic and insulting to voters any attempt to force a re-run simply to overturn this troublesome result."

This article appears in the print edition of the Irish Times