THE GOVERNMENT should not hold a referendum on European Union reforms until late next year, and only after the Oireachtas's power to monitor European Union actions is significantly increased, Fine Gael leader Enda Kenny has said.
He warned the Government that a rushed campaign will end in defeat and have "catastrophic and, possibly, irreversible implications" for Ireland's future relations with the European Union.
The Lisbon Treaty could not be put in its current form before the people again: "Any future referendum relating to Ireland's future in Europe could only be based on a substantially different proposal to that proposed in the Lisbon Treaty."
Every member state should retain a European commissioner, while the Government should drop its opt-out from cross-border anti-crime co-operation and seek "clear assurances" on neutrality and conscription, and abortion.
Because the ratification of the Lisbon Treaty is needed to block the reduction in the European Commission's size from the end of next year, Ireland should "seek a formal, binding European Council decision" that each member state will retain one seat at the table.
Ministers should be required to brief TDs before important decisions are taken in Brussels and they should heed TDs' views and report back to the Oireachtas within set deadlines.
A new constitutional office of European Union Citizens' Officer should be set up, with the power to supervise the introduction of EU law on to the Irish statute books.
"Many groups and individuals have complained about the way in which their lives are affected by the implementation of laws that originate at European level. In some cases, like the imposition of water charges on schools, the EU is being wrongly blamed by the Government for domestic decisions. In other cases, there are perceptions that Europe is responsible for excessive regulation in areas of the environment, food safety, red-tape for business and direct payments to farmers," a Fine Gael document states.
Sometimes, Ireland appears to introduce EU law more rigidly than elsewhere and this should be independently audited to check if "greater flexibility" is being offered elsewhere.
"Such an audit should invite submission from the public who feel aggrieved at the impact of the implementation of EU legislation on their lives or business activities," the statement said.
The No vote "has created some doubts about Ireland's commitment to, and relationship with the European project" and "such uncertainty" is not needed "in an era of economic turmoil and increasing competition". However, the right steps must be taken to address this challenge because failure to do so successfully would plunge the country into a possibly irreversibly worse situation.
The Government's response "must be careful and comprehensive", but its failure to engage meaningfully with Fine Gael in advance of the creation of the Oireachtas Subcommittee on Europe "does not give me confidence that Brian Cowen has learned any lessons from his mistakes during the referendum campaign," Mr Kenny said.
Every effort must be made to engage young people's interest in the EU, who see "the initial and monumental success of the European project in securing peace and stability as just an historical fact".
"I am also concerned about the Government's continued use of negative language about Europe . . ." said Mr Kenny.
