MINISTER FOR European Affairs Dick Roche has given a general welcome to calls from some Opposition politicians for the second referendum on the Lisbon Treaty to be held sooner rather than later.
However, Fine Gael leader Enda Kenny called on Taoiseach Brian Cowen to commit to holding the referendum in October.
Yesterday the Fine Gael MEP for Ireland South, Colm Burke, urged the Government to hold the new referendum in April and not to wait until autumn as planned.
Speaking ahead of his party’s European election convention in Cork, at which he was selected as a candidate, Mr Burke said: “The current economic crisis has brought home to people . . . how vital is Ireland’s membership of the European Union. It is not alarmist to state that were we not inside the Union our economic plight would mirror that of Iceland, with double-digit interest rates and reliance on an International Monetary Fund bailout.”
Mr Burke said he would like to see the leaders of the main pro-European parties, Brian Cowen, Enda Kenny and Eamon Gilmore, agreeing a joint policy platform for putting the treaty to the people in an early referendum.
Former Labour Party leader Pat Rabbitte expressed similar views on RTÉ’s The Week in Politics last night. He said the economic situation was now so dangerous that an early ratification of the treaty would help to restore international confidence in Ireland.
Mr Rabbitte said it may be appropriate to hold the referendum on the same day as June’s European and local elections.
Mr Roche welcomed Mr Rabbitte and Mr Burke’s comments, saying there was an economic imperative to restore Ireland’s international image by passing the treaty as soon as it was feasible.
“The rejection of the treaty raised big doubts about Ireland at international level and had a direct impact on how foreign investors view this country. It undoubtedly contributed to the country’s difficulties at the worst possible time,” said Mr Roche. He added, however, there were difficulties about holding the referendum before the summer as legal guarantees the Government had sought were still being worked out and would need European Council approval.
However, Mr Kenny insisted it should be held in October. “I note . . . that the Government may be considering bringing the referendum forward and holding it on the same day as the local and European elections. I believe that this would be a serious mistake. Not only would the necessary public debate on Lisbon be overshadowed by the election campaigns, it would run the risk of the elections being turned into proxy referendums by the candidates whose only political platform will be opposition to the treaty,” he said.