Smash hit

Were the Lisbon treaty to be ratified, it would mean even more red tape. Ireland would lose its right of veto in 60 new areas. So the EU could pass laws on energy or employment law for small businesses, and if our entrepreneurs don’t like them, then it’s . . . tough luck. Lisbon would also drastically reduce this country’s say at the EU’s top table. Ireland’s voting power to block damaging new regulations would be cut by 40%.

To give an example, the commission is planning to propose a law soon that will require member states to hold bigger stocks of oil and gas. When it was first proposed a couple of years ago, liberal member states vetoed it. But under the Lisbon treaty, it will go through. And in the real world, that means higher electricity and fuel bills.

The Lisbon treaty will represent a huge step towards an EU defence. Article 28a commits EU governments, including Ireland’s, to work together to form “a common Union defence”. It also creates a mutual defence commitment to defend any other member state that is attacked — so welcome to Nato. It will establish the blandly named “structured co-operation group”, a force of 60,000 EU troops made up of various battle groups.

This isn’t just about friendly peacekeeping operations of the kind the EU is involved in today. This is heavy duty stuff. Allies of the French president, Nicolas Sarkozy, have described this as an “intervention force”, and if it is not an EU army, it is certainly a big step towards one. Remember, the German chancellor, Angela Merkel, has said, “We will have to move closer to establishing a common European army,” and she means it.

Business is hugely worried about the uncertainty that the introduction of a legally binding Charter of Fundamental Rights will create. During the talks, which turned the EU constitution into the Lisbon treaty, Ireland and Britain attempted to negotiate an opt-out from the charter, but then bottled out. That should set alarm bells ringing. If the charter is such a good thing, why did the government go to so much effort to limit its effect?

Nor is the scope of the charter limited to business. It would be up to EU judges (not the Irish) to decide what the rights in the charter would mean in practice. What, for example, would the right to “balance work and family life”, to “education and training”, to “collective bargaining”, the “right to strike” and “dignity” at work really mean for employers?

Irish voters and businesses are being asked to take an enormous leap of faith, and allow the European Court to make a lot of political decisions for them.

All these issues confirm that saying Yes to the Lisbon treaty would be a huge leap in the dark. It means handing all manner of important decisions over to EU officials who can’t be controlled or voted out of office. These powers would be handed to an institution that, for the past 13 years, hasn’t had its own budget signed off by its auditors.

Voting to hand over these powers means they will be gone for ever. It has been a feature of the campaign that politicians have been evasive and hazy about what the treaty means for Ireland, and admit they haven’t even read it. This is no way to get the best deal for Ireland.

So do you feel you now know enough to hand over these powers for ever? If you don’t know for sure, then how can you vote yes?

Neil O’Brien is director of Open Europe

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