The Labour leader, Eamon Gilmore, expressed strong support for the Lisbon Treaty yesterday but he flatly contradicted the Taoiseach's view that the document was not a revolutionary one by comparison with some of the earlier EU treaties.
Addressing the National Forum on Europe in Dublin Castle, Mr Gilmore said that he wanted to concentrate on four major issues close to Labour's heart and also on the extent to which the Lisbon Treaty has advanced the Labour agenda.
He identified those issues as: a more democratic Europe; a social Europe; sustainable development; and engagement with the world. He added that he wanted to take issue with one assertion made to the forum last week by the Taoiseach, when he said: "The reform treaty is not a revolutionary document. It contains no great innovation of the stature of the single market that was introduced by the Single European Act, or the euro provided for by the Maastricht Treaty".
Contradicting the Taoiseach, Mr Gilmore said: "This is not a forum for party political point-scoring but I want to disagree with that analysis - an analysis that seems to me to be based on a reductionist view of the European project purely in terms of its economic benefits and implications.
"I believe that the major and significant progress achieved under each of the headings I have outlined gives the Lisbon reform treaty a status equal in importance to any of its predecessors. It has the potential significantly to improve the lives of ordinary people throughout both Europe and the world."
Mr Gilmore said his party was committed to a strong and focused campaign for a Yes vote precisely because the Lisbon Treaty reflected the aspirations of his party in terms of commitment to democratic principles, human rights, the rule of law, economic progress, social justice, respect for national diversity and a commitment to peace with the rest of the world.
"Our campaign will be a positive one - we will not seek to scare people about the consequences of a No vote, though those consequences would be significant. We will campaign for a Yes vote because the Lisbon Reform Treaty is a major step forward in building the kind of Europe that labour espouses."
Mr Gilmore said the Treaty included a range of provisions to enhance democratic accountability, move the Union's institutions closer to the citizen and make them more accessible. These included permanent structures to involve civil society and the churches in dialogue and a citizens' initiative whereby one million citizens from 15 or more states can initiate policies.
"There is the extension of co-decision, giving the European Parliament more say in the decision-making and budgetary system. But most importantly there is a new role for national parliaments in the legislative process. All EU legislative proposals must be forwarded to national parliaments at the same time as they are sent to the EU Parliament and to the Council of Ministers from the commission."
He maintained that the voting system in the European Council would continue to favour smaller countries. In practice it would continue to be based on a consensus approach with key policy areas, such as those relating to taxation and defence remaining subject to unanimity.