The Constitution of the United States of America begins with the words “We the people”. If the leaders of the European Union ever succeed in creating a similar document it will open with the phrase “They the people”.

The reaction of most EU governments to the decision of Irish voters to reject the Lisbon treaty has been extraordinary. There has been contempt - suggestions that the Irish people are fearful, uncomprehending and irrational; there has been denial - Wolfgang Schäuble, the German Interior Minister, said that “a few million Irish cannot decide on behalf of 495 million Europeans”; and there have been threats- plans to force Ireland out of the EU “temporarily” unless it comes round, and does so quickly (see page 8).

Underlying all this has been a combination of arrogance and unreality. European leaders are busy briefing that nothing has changed and that the treaty sails on. But, of course, it cannot. Mr Schäuble is simply wrong. A few million Irish can indeed decide on behalf of 495 million Euro- peans. This is not simply because no one has asked those 495 million Europeans for their opinion. It is because the EU is still a community of nations, not a superstate. It also does not appear to have occurred to European leaders how deeply ironic it is for them to suggest that Ireland's vote can simply be ignored. Their entire case for the Lisbon treaty rested on the argument that new rules were needed for the Union to function. How can they now argue that rules are irrelevant and can be overruled when inconvenient?

Tomorrow night, Parliament has the opportunity to show that it rejects such arrogance. The Government has announced that it intends to proceed with the ratification of the Lisbon treaty, despite the Irish vote. It will attempt to do so on Wednesday by obtaining a third reading in the House of Lords for the European Union (Amendment) Bill. It should not be allowed to succeed.

David Miliband, the Foreign Secretary, has said that “there will be no bulldozing of the Irish Government and the Irish people”. Yet what other reason can there be for pressing on with the ratification of the treaty the night before heads of government convene in Brussels to consider their next steps?

The European leaders have a large number of possible options. One is a two-speed Europe with just Ireland in the slow lane. Another is a multi-speed Europe, some in the eurozone, some not, some adhering to Schengen, some not, some signatories to Lisbon, some not. Then there is the possibility of abandoning the treaty and muddling on or, once again, sitting down to renegotiation. If the Lords votes to proceed, it is signing up for an outcome that it cannot possibly predict. This would not be just unwise but irresponsible.

To pass the Bill on Wednesday is therefore to pass into law a treaty that may change profoundly, or may never be implemented at all. The only purpose in doing so is to bully the Irish. For all its talk, this Government seems to want to be in the driver's cab of a bulldozer that we should be lying down in front of. Before the third reading begins in the Lords, that House retains the ability to return the treaty to committee for further detailed consideration. This is an option very much worth preserving given the current uncertainty. Peers will be given the chance to vote to delay the third reading. They should take it.