Irish people voted against the Lisbon Treaty in the only referendum to be held on the European Union reform accord because they did not understand it, according to research published by the Irish government.

A total of 42 per cent of those who voted No gave lack of information or understanding as their reason, according to the poll carried out by Millward Brown IMS in the last week of July.

Meanwhile, 33 per cent thought that the introduction of conscription into a pan-European army was part of the Lisbon Treaty while 34 per cent believed that it would strip Ireland of its control over abortion policy.

“An EU knowledge deficit is clearly present which has undoubtedly contributed to the No vote,” according to the poll and focus group research.

“Knowledge of EU institutions and how they work appears to be particularly low. The difficulty of advocating a referendum that is based on the premise of institutional reform in this environment is apparent.”

The results of the poll had been predicted in advance, with most commentators saying it merely confirmed what was already known.

Publication 13 weeks after the No vote won seems to be part of the government’s strategy of delaying the formation of a definite plan of action to be taken for as long as is diplomatically possible.

President Sarkozy angered Irish voters by saying that Ireland would have to vote again – the sooner the better.

Dick Roche, the Europe Minister, said last week that it was his personal opinion that another referendum would have to be held. But any chance of getting voters to change their minds would need more time to pass than most EU members want.

The process of ratification of the Lisbon Treaty will be completed by all the other member countries by January. Irish government realists believe that the very earliest it could risk putting the treaty to the people again would be late next year.

The government poll also found that 60 per cent of voters felt that Ireland’s interests were best served by remaining fully involved in the EU. A total of 18 per cent said that there should be less involvement and 22 per cent did not know.

Also,14 per cent believe that Ireland’s influence in the European Union has been strengthened by the No vote, compared with 42 per cent who felt it had been unchanged and 30 per cent who felt it had been weakened.

Micheál Martin, the Foreign Minister, said: “People clearly had worries about issues that came up during the campaign. These included worries about the possible loss of influence for Ireland, corporation tax and neutrality.

“The report also shows that the (loss of an) Irish Commissioner, abortion, corporation tax, neutrality, conscription and workers rights were among the main issues that gave rise to concern among voters.”

He said that the government would not take any definitive proposals for how to deal with the result of the Lisbon Referendum at next month's European Council meeting.

Asked about the likelihood of a second referendum he said that it was “far too early to be prescriptive about the future”.

Times Recommends

• Rio Tinto four held as China prepares case
• Diplomats must keep heads down and trousers up
• When in Rome should one make like Berlusconi?