ILR’s Lisbon Treaty Debate: Continue the Discussion
With the day that is in it, you have either decided by now how you are going to vote today, have already done so, or are in the final stages of making a decision. So its a good time perhaps to provide a recap of the articles on The Lisbon Treaty which have been written for Irish Left Review in the last weeks and months, ordered by the dates they were published. Feel free to add your own comments on Lisbon below. First up, Andy Storey.
Dr. Andy Storey is the Chairperson of Afri, and College Lecturer at the Centre for Development Studies, University College Dublin. In his first article last June he provided a detailed analysis of the draft assurances provided by the Council of Ministers on what the Lisbon Treaty means with regard to security and defence.
Commentary on the Draft ‘Assurances’ re Lisbon concerning Security and Defence
After examining the assurances Andy concludes:
“The fact remains that the EU is becoming more militarized under the Lisbon Treaty: common defence commitments are flagged, increased military spending is encouraged, the range of rationales and potential roles for EU overseas operations is extended, and the PSC provisions allow for EU operations to be undertaken by sub-groups of member states with the support of all members (including Ireland). That fundamental fact is unaltered by ‘assurances’ and opt-outs of doubtful legal status. And if this is not the kind of Europe we want, then the case for voting ‘no’ remains as a strong as before.”
Next, was an article by Joe Higgins MEP, and Leader of The Socialist Party which responded directly to the claims being made by the Charter Group about the Charter for Fundamental Rights now included as part of the Lisbon Treaty.
Joe Higgins MEP on Lisbon & Workers Rights
“Finally, the idea which Blair Horan raises in his letter to the Irish Times that the “Declaration on Workers’ Rights secured by the Irish Government… will assist the ongoing process to address these concerns” is laughable. This declaration has as much standing as a Fianna Fail election promise. Aspirations and a paraphrasing of the Treaty do not alter the fundamental point – European Court judgements have been an
important instrument in driving down workers’ rights and Lisbon copper-fastens these.”
In his second article for Irish Left Review Andy Storey wrote about how the Lisbon Treaty will have a negative impact on the development of ‘developing countries’ in Africa, Asia and Latin America.
“A point that has been used by pro-Treaty advocates is that, because Ireland has gotten the ‘concession’ of each state retaining its own commissioner, the post of a Commissioner for Development (which currently exists) is now safeguarded. The Development Commissionership would probably have been one of those dropped if the Commission size had been shrunk. But what does this say about the EU, that it would have axed the Development brief? What does that imply about its ‘commitment’ to development? In any event, the presence of a Development Commissioner in the past has not altered the anti-development trade agenda of the EU.”
Joe Costello TD, and Labour Party spokesman on European affairs argued that it is no coincidence that the Lisbon Treaty, so strongly opposed by the far-right, has won support from the overwhelming majority of Socialist parties across Europe and from the European Trade Union Confederation.
It is No Coincidence Why Socialist Parties Across Europe Support the Lisbon Treaty
“The referendum on the treaty is a battle over Ireland’s and Europe’s future. It will pit those who want to strengthen Europe’s distinctive social model against those who want the EU to be weaker, unable to regulate markets or provide leadership on environmental standards and leaving Europe to the mercy of an unregulated market forces. It is no coincidence that it is the British Conservative party that most vehemently opposes Lisbon.”
Our final article on Lisbon was from the leader of the Labour Party Eamon Gilmore. He argued that the labour movement should be under no illusion where there interests lie.
The Labour Movement Should Be Under No Illusions About Where Its Interests Lie
“The referendum on the treaty is a battle over Ireland’s and Europe’s future. It will pit those who want to strengthen Europe’s distinctive social model against those who want the EU to be weaker, unable to regulate markets or provide leadership on environmental standards and leaving Europe to the mercy of an unregulated market forces.
The Labour movement should be under no illusions about where its interests lie. We must vote Yes to a treaty whose values and objectives set are ones that are shared by Labour movements across our continent.”
Although not original pieces written for Irish Left Review we have also published a statement from Lawyers Against Lisbon and Media Bite’s Miriam Cotton’s analysis of the media coverage of Lisbon written for Znet.
Discussion
We welcome and encourage lively discussion from the public about articles on Irish Left Review. You can leave a comment using the form at the bottom of the page. Please read through the existing comments before posting your own.
Comment by: Tangent
Oct 2nd 2009 at 11:10
Get the facts on the Lisbon Treaty: a simple article with no bias to help you decide:
http://www.solascircle.com/2009/09/the-lisbon-treaty-put-simply/
Remember, we can change our government, but the Treaty will be a permanent change to our constitution.
Comment by: AMG
Oct 2nd 2009 at 15:10
Also written into our Constitution will be a commitment to impose nuclear power across Europe, and a commitment to have no say whatsoever in it.