Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2002-06-12-Speech-3-038"
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"en.20020612.1.3-038"2
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"Mr President, as Mr De Rossa has pointed out it is expected that the Seville Summit will discuss the holding of a second Irish referendum on the Treaty of Nice. Such a step, regrettable as it is, would have been unnecessary if the political establishment in Ireland had made any effort to persuade voters to ratify it. Instead, a diverse coalition was able to exploit unfounded fears, resulting in its rejection and untold harm being inflicted on Ireland's position within the EU and damaging our relations with applicant states.
Successful ratification is possible, but only if a huge effort is put into the 'yes' campaign. Our task is not made any easier because we are asking the electorate to overturn a decision it has already made. Additionally, opponents of the Treaty have been strengthened by their electoral success in the recent Irish general election.
The responsibility for securing a successful outcome to the second referendum rests with Ireland's pro-European parties and social partners. However, the prime responsibility rests with the Irish Government. Its task is made infinitely more difficult when its main spokesman at the Convention on Europe, former Commissioner Ray MacSharry, has disappointingly made it absolutely clear that his government has drawn a line in the sand in relation to future European integration. Its approach – to state 'this far and no further' – moves it closer to the British position on Europe, which places more emphasis on a free trade area rather than pursuing political union.
I take this opportunity to warn the Irish Government that it is following a very dangerous path. Opportunistic Eurosceptic stances by some of its leading members played into the hands of those who opposed the Treaty of Nice, thereby contributing to its rejection. It does not help that a leading Eurosceptic has been promoted to full cabinet rank. Pandering to the same prejudices again could well result in a second failure and consequently leave Ireland in a semi-detached relationship with our EU partners, and that would be disastrous."@en1
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