Ireland’s citizens are due to vote yet again on the Lisbon Treaty, this Thursday 2 October. There is good coverage on the BBC Inside Europe website. After Ireland rejected the treaty last year, it has been kept ‘on ice’. So people will be watching the results with interest. Irish business leaders have encouraged people to vote Yes, according to the BBC . Intute has been tracking other news and views……
The independent EurActiv news service has many good reports on the Irish vote. Some European news sites are not giving it big coverage, preferring to talk about lofty matters like Roman Polanski’s arrest. In the EU Observer, a report says that France will not be put off pushing for further integration, even it Ireland says No. The official EU site Europa’s Press Room page only mentions that Germany has ratified the treaty….nothing on Ireland.
As would be expected, the Irish Times newspaper has a detailed guide to the treaty. An interesting personal viewpoint by a person who worked in Brussels is given in this IrelandandLisbon blog by Jim Murray, an Irishman.
Intute has many more free quality resources dealing with Lisbon Treaty question, from blogs to newspaper reports, from official EU pages to scholarly research centres to eurosceptic sites. Why not try a search on the main Intute page?
Pat Buckley says: September 29, 2009 @ 9:18 pm
Regarding the Lisbon Treaty,there is one question that has not been answered properly, that is the antidemocratic nature of the treaty.
The question is if the Lisbon treaty is passed will it be the last referendum that Ireland will ever vote on again?
Angela Joyce says: September 30, 2009 @ 9:08 am
Dear Pat
Thanks for your comment. What do others think?
Marcos says: September 30, 2009 @ 10:26 am
The ratification of the Lisbon Treaty is being a painful way. The European Commission is pushing for ratification in MS but the truth is that if referenda were held in more MS than in those where it is compulsory, we may see that citizens may well say NO. Look at the situation in The Czech Republic, The UK, Poland, even Germany and France. Citizens across Europe are becoming much more demanding with the EU asking them to end a sort of project where a political elite decides which sector is going to be part of integration and which sector is not going to be depending on their own needs. Ordinary people now also want to have a say and that is why the Lisbon project is being rejected.
For example, if you take the Single Market for too long the EU has been hypocritical about what is going to be within the single market and what is not going to; take, for instance, public services, agriculture, gambling. Please have a look at
http://www.right2bet.net to sign an online petition as regards what I am referring to.
Ratzer says: October 5, 2009 @ 11:29 am
Dear companions in misfortune,
May I thank you for your effort and pain to help the free people in Europe?
It was great to see that all of you are very honest and fair people. Unfortunately the good could not win that challenge.
It was a black Friday last week for all free and open minded people in our home countries. To much unaware people voted for the dictatorship.
Good bless you and be with us no in the darkness of freedom.
Rob Ratzer
Germany
pat says: October 13, 2009 @ 11:37 pm
U.S.E The united states of Europe . MYSELF AND EVERYONE I KNOW VOTED NO ??????????? RIGGED?????????????