Ireland must deliver a Yes vote in the referendum on the Lisbon treaty on June 12th in order to reaffirm the positive approach that has achieved so much since we joined in 1973, Tánaiste Brian Cowen said tonight.
Mr Cowen hit out at the “cynics” calling for a No vote and said the referendum is “a call to action for every person who recognises the importance of the European Union to our country and wants to go further with an approach which has delivered success at home and influence abroad”.
He said Europe was too important to let the opponents of the treaty set the agenda.
“The truth is that this treaty goes to the heart of the Irish commitment to Europe. If you want to see this demonstrated all you have to do is look at the argument that we should vote No because of the status of European law set out in the constitutional amendment. The anti-Europeans are claiming that this marks the end of our constitution,” Mr Cowen said.
“The cynicism of this is incredible, because they know it is exactly the same wording which has been in our constitution since 1972.
“The wording simply obliges us to respect the obligations we have signed up to. It represents common sense and is so basic that it is to be found in the constitutional law of every member country. In fact you cannot be a member without it.”
Addressing a Fianna Fáil Europe Rally meeting in Cork, the party’s leader-designate said Ireland did not want to become a “semi-detached” member of the EU that would “snipe from the sidelines”.
He said Europe had been an enabler of economic and social progress for Ireland.
“The extraordinary act of solidarity which was involved in the transfer of funding for our development was essential in turning economic decline into dynamism.
“However, it was not just this funding that helped us end the cycle of mass unemployment and emigration - the union opened up remarkable opportunities by giving us a level playing field on which to compete and win.”
Mr Cowen said improvements in working conditions and equality were driven by “a model of European development which ensures that all members respect core standards and do not seek to achieve an economic edge based on unfair social practices”.
On the complicated nature of the Lisbon treaty, Mr Cowen said: “Because of the respect which the European Union has for the rights of members states, the process for agreeing any change to the basic law of the Union is lengthy and requires a formal treaty which is ratified in every member state according to their own democratic traditions.
“These treaties are not easy to read for the very reason that numerous qualifications and sub-clauses are included to provide for specific national concerns. Anything so complicated is easy to misrepresent - and the union's opponents are masters of misrepresentation.”
Mr Cowen said Fianna Fáil had always been committed to a vision of Ireland as a “positive, outward-looking and modern European nation”.
“The world isn't standing still and the European Union must continue to evolve. The Lisbon Reform Treaty is true to the model of a European Union which has given us so much. It helps the union to evolve to meet the challenges of the 21st century and therefore Ireland should ratify it with a resounding Yes vote.”
Opponents of the Reform Treaty have said it is a "failed plan" and a "flawed document".
Declan Ganley, chair of the Libertas group, set up specifically to oppose the Lisbon treaty recently told a gathering of Danish eurosceptics the treaty was "disastrous".
Mr Ganley has said he is prepared to spent €1 million in his campaign against the treaty and that the sovereignty of Europe must remain vested in its citizens instead of what he has called an "unaccountable Brussels elite".