Speech by the Taoiseach, Mr. Bertie Ahern, T.D. to the Association of European Journalistson Saturday 10 November 2007 at 10am
I am delighted to be with you today and would like to thank Eileen Dunne for inviting me to speak to you.
This year marks the 50th anniversary of the Treaty of Rome, a milestone in Europe’s history which laid the foundations of today’s European Union by putting in place a set of common policies and establishing a set of European institutions.
Lawyers joke that lovers of sausages and the law should watch neither being made. The same might be true of those who love European politics, for compromise is the lifeblood of our Union. The compromise and moderation required for twenty seven countries to work together successfully does not always lead to snappy outcomes, or for that matter, news friendly presentations.
The Reform Treaty might be considered a case in point. Perhaps that is why you have collectively developed such fine skills at finding angles to engage your readers and listeners, and refined your capacity to identify differences and highlight conflicts which others have tried to overcome! I hope that does not preclude you from stating, from time to time, the obvious benefits which the European project has delivered.
Reform Treaty
Ireland has benefited as much as any country from the rich legacy of the Treaty of Rome. There is hardly an area of economic or social life in Ireland that has not progressed, thanks, often indirectly, by our membership of the Union.
An enlarged Union in a globalising world faces different challenges and requires different institutional structures and operating principles to deliver for the people of Europe. It is for that reason that we now wish to see the Reform Treaty enter into force to put in place the framework for a better functioning Europe.
I know that you will be interested in our ratification process and I will concentrate on that today. The context though, is the huge contribution Europe has made and continues to make to our society.
Let me briefly mention some examples:
The single market has been central to Ireland leaping forward economically, with dramatic rises in the standard of living.
The European Union has provided us with leadership in areas such as labour law, environmental standards and gender equality.
The Euro, the Common Agricultural Policy, and structural and cohesion funds have all contributed towards the development of our social physical and economic infrastructure and helped our transition.
Although often derided as clichéd, the European Union has delivered peace and prosperity for its own people over decades. For us on the geographic peripheral of the continent and with our strong tradition of neutrality, it might be easy to underestimate just how profoundly important that has been right across Europe.
Nonetheless, we too on this island, have our own reasons to value peace and stability and the prosperity they can foster. In recent years, the enlargement process and the prospect of membership and sharing in a stable democratic space based on democratic values and the rule of law, has succeeded in spreading the stability that some of us might risk taking for granted.
Referendum
Turning now to the referendum, I expect that for some of you, this weekend serves also as a reconnaissance trip to identify key locations for next year! I hope you will be made feel as welcome then as you are now.
It is for each Member State to determine by itself and in accordance with its own constitutional and legal frameworks, how it will ratify the Reform Treaty. Ireland will do so by referendum.
At this point, it seems very likely that we will be alone in holding a referendum. No decision has yet been taken on a date, but it is likely that we will hold our referendum in the first half of 2008.
The implications of the Irish debate will stretch far beyond our shores. Because of this, we can expect people from abroad to try and shape the outcome. For some, particularly those opposed to the European Union, it will be a proxy for a national debate that they wished they could have had in their own country.
The Treaty is due to be signed next month, and early in the New Year the Minister of Foreign Affairs will move a referendum Bill in the Dáil. A point sometimes missed by commentators is that we need both the approval of democratically elected legislature to hold the referendum, and approval of the people for the proposal put in that referendum.
Shortly after the passing of the Bill in the Oireachtas, the Referendum Commission will be established. It has three vital tasks:
(i) to explain the subject matter so that the public know what it is they
are being asked to vote on,
(ii) to promote public awareness that the referendum is happening; and
(iii) to maximise participation.
That last point will represent a considerable challenge. You may recall the first defeated Nice Treaty referendum here in 2001 when the turnout was 34%. After a number of measures were put in place to allay the key public concerns, and following a much more vigorous public debate, the people in 2002 approved the Treaty with a turnout 50% higher, although still below what one would want.
I think it is generally accepted that the political system did not engage sufficiently during the first referendum. We do not plan on a repeat of that. The Minister for European Affairs, Dick Roche, will be leading the Government’s efforts and he has no intention of adopting a laid back approach. I am sure that he will impress that upon you when he hosts you for dinner this evening.
One of the key measures put in place after the first Nice referendum was the establishment of the Forum On Europe which is made up of representatives of all the parties represented in the Oireachtas, whatever their views on Europe. The Forum has helped develop and sustain awareness of European issues and will play a key role in the forthcoming debate. I hope many of you are able to devote time to attending and covering the Forum’s work.
There was an opinion poll published earlier this week which suggested that some 60% of people do not know how they intend to vote. I was not hugely surprised at the figure. The public could not be expected to follow every development over the past couple of years. Given the way things have evolved, it is hardly surprising that some confusion exists.
Once the Member States have signed the Treaty and we move towards ratification, we will begin the information campaign. We must ensure that the public clearly understand the question facing them and why it is important that they vote. The Government will also be working hard to explain why, for our part, we are certain that the Lisbon Reform Treaty is in the interest of both Ireland and Europe.
The benefits which Ireland will gain from the Reform Treaty are those which arise because of a better functioning Europe. A Europe of 27 cannot operate in the same way as a Europe of six or 12.
The double majority voting system provides for a fairer and more efficient decision making system. Decisions must be supported both in terms of population and in terms of the number of Member States of the Union. That makes intuitive sense.
The Charter of Fundamental Rights will have the full force of law. It underpins the rights of citizens in Europe and sets down a statement of the Union’s values.
The Treaty reinforces the powers of the European Parliament and gives a new role to the Oireachtas in European decision making.
The Treaty provides support for the Union in tackling climate change by introducing a competence in that area for the first time - an Irish initiative I am happy to say.
The Treaty requires social consequences to be considered when assessing the likely impact of legislative proposals.
The post of President of the Council will give greater shape and purpose to high level meetings, and should bring more continuity and coherence to the Union’s work.
The Treaty provides for a clearer EU voice in the international arena so that Europe’s views, and the values we support, are more influential.
This Treaty then, puts an end to nearly a decade of institutional debate. It is a further stage of development of a Union which, in the round, has served Ireland very well. It represents a rational step to update the Union’s rules and focus, and an essential step for the functioning of our enlarged Union in a vastly changed world.
While Ireland has clearly benefited from the Union, I am equally convinced that our membership has been good for Europe. We bring our own unique perspective to bear on negotiations and policy making. As an enormously open economy and with a long tradition of emigration, more recently replaced by immigration, we are proud of our contribution to international development, be that in Europe or globally.
The Union looking forward
The Union must now look forward and most importantly, outward to the wider world, where many of the key challenges do not recognise international borders. Cross border crime, interlinked economies, immigration, and perhaps most of all, climate change, have little or no respect for borders.
Increased acceptance of the reality of climate change and its causes brings an increased expectation of an effective response, even if that response requires major changes.
The Union, as an unparalleled development in the sharing of sovereignty by countries in order to advance their shared goals, is uniquely positioned to lead the international response to challenges such as climate change. That is both a responsibility and an opportunity which we are seizing.
The last 50 years of the Union have been an unprecedented success. As the world has changed, so too has our Union. As we look to the next 50 years, we see a different set of challenges and opportunities. We must equip the Union with the tools to deliver for us what we ask of it in the future, as it has done for us in the past. That is what the Reform Treaty boils down to.
I look forward to the debate and meeting many of you during the campaign. I am sure I can count on you to be probing, searching, honest and accurate in your coverage of the issues, both in Ireland and across Europe in the months ahead.
Thank you and I wish you a very enjoyable stay in Dublin.
ENDS.