TAOISEACH BRIAN Cowen has said the survival of the country and not his personal future or that of Fianna Fáil is at stake in the second Lisbon referendum.
Mr Cowen said he did not contemplate the referendum being defeated and therefore the question of him resigning in the event of the treaty being rejected for a second time did not arise.
Mr Cowen was speaking at the formal launch of the Fianna Fáil campaign for a Yes vote in Dublin yesterday. He said that the European Union was where Ireland’s future lay and that the EU was “fundamental to the recovery of the economy”.
“This is not about the future of the Government or personalities. It’s about the future of the country,” said Mr Cowen.
“It’s not politics as usual. We need to focus on the importance of Lisbon at this time. We need to decide what is in our interest as a people, what is the message we want to send [to others in the European Union].”
Mr Cowen and Minister for Foreign Affairs Micheál Martin were the principal speakers at the launch, which was attended by all Fianna Fáil Ministers, with the exception of Minister for Finance Brian Lenihan. Many Ministers of State also attended as well as a small number of TDs and Senators. The slogans for the campaign are “Ireland Needs Europe” and “We’re Stronger with Europe”.
During the course of his speech, Mr Cowen argued that Europe had listened to the Irish people following last year’s rejection of the treaty.
He said Ireland now had a guaranteed commissioner and had obtained guarantees on all the issues that came to the fore last year, including military neutrality, taxation, abortion, workers’ rights and social protection.
“The new legal guarantees which the Irish people have received are both comprehensive and legally watertight in addressing these issues,” he said.
He attacked groups who opposed the treaty who now claimed that the issues addressed by guarantees were irrelevant.
“These are the same people who last year erected thousands of posters about our commissioner, tax, neutrality and other issues.
“I have no doubt that the Irish people are too intelligent to allow this sort of cynicism to succeed.”
Mr Cowen also focused on the wider economic implications, saying that the single market has been responsible for the creation of hundreds of thousands of jobs in this country.
He also said that in the present economic crisis, Ireland’s need to be at the heart of Europe was more important than ever.
“The simple fact is that a rejection of this treaty after receiving comprehensive assurances to our concerns would be seen by many as Ireland moving away from the core of the EU. There is no conceivable economic benefit which would come from this and there is undeniable potential for long-term damage.
“The economic case for a Yes vote goes beyond the important issue of confidence in our standing with the union. An effective European Union, properly equipped to tackle major economic concerns, can only be to our benefit,” he said.
Asked on RTÉ last night about a third referendum if the No vote prevailed, Mr Cowen said that European leaders have indicated if the treaty was not passed by the end of the year, that they would have to consider a two-speed Europe. He reiterated his view that he did not contemplate a defeat.
Mr Martin signalled in his speech that Fianna Fáil would be more confrontational in contesting claims made by the No side.
“We understand that the public is interested in a campaign about the real issues and this is what we intend to provide. We will respond when wild and false attacks are made against the EU and the treaty,” said Mr Martin.
He also conveyed his view that co-ordination between the parties campaigning for a Yes vote would be limited.
“The public does not expect or want a single Yes campaign or message, but we have been co-operating for some time on basic matters with the other campaigns,” he said.