Main focus of Monday, October 5, 2009

The Irish have said "Yes" - now what?

A large majority of Irish voted on Friday in favour of the EU Reform Treaty. In a second referendum in less than 16 months, 67.1 percent of voters said "Yes" to the Treaty of Lisbon, and 32.9 percent said "No". At 58 percent participation was somewhat higher than in June of 2008 (53.13 percent), when a majority of voters rejected the Treaty. The European press discusses what steps must now be taken to reform the EU.

Õhtuleht - Estonia

The tabloid Õhtuleht sees egoistic economic motives behind the Irish "Yes" to the Treaty of Lisbon: "Iceland, which previously thought itself too good for the EU, is now flirting with Europe for similar reasons. In any event we can no longer accuse the Baltic states - and the entire East Bloc - of wanting to join the EU out of egoism when we see that nor are the motives of Western European states entirely noble. Estonians weren't allowed to have a say at all on the Treaty of Lisbon. Instead parliament ratified the Treaty single-handedly. According to our political logic it's enough for people to go to the polls once every four years. ... But if they had been allowed to have their say, the Reform Treaty would hardly have stood a chance of going through here as elsewhere. Even the Eurocrats have no doubt about that. As a result, however, the Treaty of Lisbon is as far removed from us as the Soviet Union once was." (05/10/2009)

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More from the press review on the subject » International Relations, » EU Policy, » Economic Policy, » Ireland, » Estonia, » Europe, » Iceland

De Morgen - Belgium

The Irish changed their mind on the Lisbon Treaty solely out of self-interest, writes the daily De Morgen, commenting that the Irish "No" sixteen months ago came in times of economic prosperity: "Thanks to EU subsidies Ireland was able to grow from an agrarian state into an economic tiger. But when times were good all the Irish cared about was their own prosperity. Now that we are once more in a period of crisis, the Irish hope Europe will once more be a source of subsidies and jobs. The European Union has primarily itself to blame for the lack of gratitude on the part of its citizens. Despite all the smart essays that have been written on the subject, Europe today is above all a cold economic union, and anything but an enthusiastic community. ... With Barroso in office for another term, a shift to the right on the part of the European Parliament and above all conservatives in the best positions for the top jobs, one can hardly expect things to improve. The socialists missed a historic chance to create a new Europe five years ago when they had a majority of heads of government." (05/10/2009)

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More from the press review on the subject » EU Constitution, » Europe
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Dnevnik - Slovenia

The daily Dnevnik says the EU needs to finally start dealing with the important issues with or without the Lisbon Treaty: "Because the EU has taken so long [with the Lisbon Treaty] it has less time for strategic questions - even though the Lisbon Treaty is supposed to make it more effective and guarantee a higher standing on the international stage. But in truth the Treaty achieves nothing so revolutionary that the EU couldn't function normally without it in future. … If the new Treaty helps the EU work better then the focus must be on the strategic goals that bring rapid change and tackle problems successfully, rather than horse-trading and countless details. … Perhaps the general depressed state of the economy and thus of EU citizens' everyday life will produce changes in the heads of European politicians. It's true that regulations on institutional activities are important. But people find it hard to understand that the EU is so preoccupied 'with itself' and not with the problems they [the people] face." (05/10/2009)

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More from the press review on the subject » EU Policy, » EU Constitution, » Europe
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Göteborgs-Posten - Sweden

According to the Swedish daily Göteborgs-Posten, the clear "Yes" in the Irish referendum brings the EU closer to its goal: "The Treaty of Lisbon is on the verge of being implemented. All that's missing is the signatures of the Polish and Czech presidents. Above all Czech President Václav Klaus is keeping people guessing. Nevertheless the political process has now cleared all of the political hurdles and only awaits the decision by the Constitutional Court in the next weeks. It will be very difficult for Klaus to withhold his signature. Once the Treaty finally goes into force, it will implement a whole run of improvements. EU enlargement will be possible once more, a basis for peace and stability in Europe. ... The European Parliament will be endowed with greater powers. The principles of subsidiarity and the public responsiveness will be more clearly defined. And a more powerful, better-coordinated foreign policy will result. Seen in this light the Irish Yes is very welcome. We're into the home stretch." (04/10/2009)

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More from the press review on the subject » EU enlargement, » EU Policy, » Europe

The Irish Times - Ireland

The result of last Friday's referendum on the Treaty of Lisbon has shown that the Irish are good Europeans, writes the liberal daily The Irish Times: "The resounding two to one majority for the Lisbon Treaty is, as Taoiseach Brian Cowen has said, good for Ireland and good for the European Union. It has reaffirmed that Irish people are among the most enthusiastic supporters of the European project and understand that our fate lies with, and at the heart of it, not least in the middle of the mother of all economic crises. While one may have to go back to the Maastricht vote in 1992 to find a higher vote (69 per cent), for decades Irish voters surveyed by Eurobarometer have remained consistently among the EU's three most supportive electorates." (05/10/2009)

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More from the press review on the subject » EU Constitution, » Ireland, » Europe

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