IRELAND WILL have to stand aside and let other European Union countries co-operate more closely if the country rejects a second Lisbon treaty referendum, former EU commissioner Peter Sutherland has warned.
"I believe that the result of the referendum in Ireland has been an unprecedented disaster for Ireland's foreign policy," said the British Petroleum and Goldman Sachs chairman in a speech last night in Edinburgh in Scotland.
Irish voters were "entitled" to vote No in the June referendum, but they did so, he believed, on the back of "the sort of misinformation" about the EU prevalent in the United Kingdom, largely due to a Eurosceptic press.
" does not alter the fact that the dilemma now is Ireland's. We now have to find a way forward. Clearly that must be through having a second referendum. It has surely never been more clear to Irish people that we need the EU and to be in good standing in it.
"We certainly are not in good standing today, though we have been protected, at a time of unprecedented economic vulnerability, by our membership of the EU and the euro zone and the support of the European Central Bank," Sutherland said to the Edinburgh Europa Institute at Edinburgh University.
"The example of Ireland stands in stark but relevant contrast to that of Iceland. A second referendum will be conducted in very different circumstances and with at least one substantive change," he went on.
Every EU member will retain a commissioner under compromise concessions to be offered to Taoiseach Brian Cowen at this week's summit of EU leaders in Brussels: "It is not one that I would wish for but appears to be wanted in Ireland.
"I believe that it should be possible to find a unanimous agreement that each country will be entitled to a commissioner," he said, adding that this should help to "change the terms of the debate" in Ireland.
"Assurances and clarifications" on neutrality, tax, defence, etc "will finally dispose of many of the totally spurious arguments that characterised" the referendum.
"We will then be faced with a second referendum that will have to be, and I believe will be, won.
"We have to understand that a No vote again is not a tenable position.
"For one country to stand in the way of a decision made by the parliaments of the other 26 representing almost 500 million people is not a sustainable option.
"The honourable course would have to be to stand aside in one way or another and let the rest proceed," said the former EU commissioner who, because of his positions at BP and Goldman Sachs, is one of the most influential business people in the UK.
Sutherland implicitly criticises the Government's clear preference for an October referendum: "I believe that all the major Irish political parties should support an early conclusion to negotiations with our partners and a referendum in the spring.
"In my opinion, delaying matters is unfair to our partners and to the European Parliament and commission whose elections will be disrupted. Furthermore, it will leave the EU in a state of uncertainty at an important time in its history.
"It serves no purpose other than one which is extraneous to the main issue. There is no reason to believe that delay will affect the outcome. However, one thing is clear: it is the responsibility of the Irish political class to get us out of this situation and it should be given priority," he said.
The UK is now faced with "the possibility of a change of government" and the election of a Conservative government likely to be more negative towards the EU than any previous administration since Britain joined, he said.