In the next few days, people are making their minds up about the Nice Treaty.
Many, I am glad to say, will vote Yes to signal that we wish to open the door of the European Union to the peoples of central and Eastern Europe. They are positive and confident that Ireland can secure jobs and prosperity in a wider Europe and in global markets.
A much smaller number are clearly determined to vote No, as they have done on all European referendums. Among them are parties of the hard left, which have policies that would destroy jobs, prosperity and freedom in Ireland, Europe and beyond. Today, however, I want to address directly the people who are thinking about voting No for the first time in a European referendum. I have met you in the last few weeks. You are people of moderation, genuinely concerned for the public interest, democrats all.
But you say you don't like what's coming out of Europe these days. You say you don't want the large countries to dominate the EU. You say you think Ireland's interests cannot be secured, despite our best efforts.
I understand all these concerns. I ask you not to dismiss your concerns, but to think again about how you will use your vote next Thursday.
The Nice Treaty is about changing some of the rules and decision-making procedures of the EU to allow it to work effectively with more member-states.
The peoples of central and Eastern Europe want to join their European family. They want to have a chance to secure, once and for all, the peace and prosperity that we can offer. This would be a historic achievement, finally and forever to undo the injustice and oppression that went with the communist Iron Curtain.
Our vote counts, for our own country and for those 12 applicant states. Our vote will be a signal to them about how we, the Irish people, a small section of the EU population, view their hopes for a prosperous and peaceful future. Are we willing to give them a chance? Or do we shut the door on them?
For ourselves, we have achieved tremendous social and economic progress by looking outward. The achievement of record levels of jobs for our people has come from our decision to compete in the wider world, looking outward, not inward. Over 140,000 people have jobs in Ireland in international companies, and many hundreds of thousands in spin-off jobs.
I am not saying that a No vote to Nice would immediately destroy those jobs. But I am convinced that the same confident, outward-looking attitude and policies that delivered these jobs for the first time in Ireland leads to a Yes vote. We must be open and confidently embrace the challenges of a bigger European market and a global economy.
Some people sincerely wish to accept new member-states, but are concerned about the direction of Europe, how democratic it is and the policies being proposed. Those concerns, I believe, are about a wider debate on Europe that is now beginning.
The changes in the Nice Treaty itself are fair and balanced. We keep an equal right to a European Commissioner, with all other member-states, even as large member-states lose one commissioner. We have kept our national veto on tax, the heart of economic policy.
We are making room, in a fair way, for European Parliament seats for other member-states.
The EU is not becoming a military alliance, and we are keeping the sovereign right to participate in any EU peace-enforcement humanitarian missions. The EU is not becoming a discriminatory two-tiered structure. If some member-states want to engage in "enhanced co-operation", no other country can be kept out, nor can any country be forced to take part.
No, the concerns that worry you, I believe, are more to do with wider issues that are not yet decided. My belief is that the best way we can ensure the democratic will of the Irish people is heard is to assert our position strongly and publicly.
That is why we objected respectfully and robustly to the view of the Commission on our budget policy earlier this year.
We will engage in an open, public debate on the future design of the EU that the leaders of the member-states and the Commission have begun in recent weeks. We will challenge ourselves, our fellow member-states and EU officials with a strong view on the best way forward for the Union. This must include policies as well as structures. We need both the right structures and the right policies.
Asserting our voice is the way to keep the EU democratic and to make sure that its decisions and structures have the backing of the peoples it serves.
I would urge you finally to think about who you trust to lead Ireland in our robust and positive engagement on the international stage. The changes at the Nice summit were agreed in tough negotiations.
Would you trust any negotiations for Ireland to those people who are opposing the Nice Treaty? None of the parties and groups opposing the Nice Treaty has ever negotiated anything for Ireland or delivered any benefits for the country. They have never suggested, before the Nice summit or since, any constructive negotiating position that would work in the real world for Ireland's interests.
Do you want to hand the initiative to them now? Do you want your vote to be claimed by them as support for their agendas?
So, I say, think again, and think positively. The political leaders you trust can, and will, secure Ireland's interests in Europe and the world. Let us be confident in ourselves, and generous to others. Vote Yes to Nice.