On Thursday the 12th of June, the people of Ireland will vote on whether to accept the Lisbon Treaty. I know which way I’ll be voting, and the reasons why. Before you lose interest and move on, let me be clear, this is not a post about what I think the result should be. I’m not pushing for either a Yes or No vote – I hope that you’d be able to make your own mind up.
On one side, you have the Yes campaign trying to push the message that the Lisbon Treaty is good for Ireland and Europe, it’s a step forward and will show that Ireland is still a valuable member of the EU.
The No campaign have focussed on pushing the message that the Lisbon Treaty will be bad for Ireland, will reduce the countries power and representation within the EU, and is an EU constitution in disguise.
What bothers me is that neither side have actually discussed what the treaty contains. Why is it supposed to be good, or bad, for the country? What is it exactly that we are voting for? When Charlie McCreevy admits that he has not read the treaty, what does that say to the rest of us? Who decided that the best way to run the Yes and No campaigns was to do so without explaining what we’re voting for?
So before you vote on Thursday, take the time to research what you’ll be voting for. There’s more information from the Lisbon Treaty Referendum website, and the full text of the Lisbon Treaty is available here.
Tags: ireland, lisbon treaty, referendum
Free Europe Constitution is better than the Lisbon Treaty.
You can vote YES or NO to Free Europe at http://www.FreeEurope.info !