Since Generation YES was launched in April we have been talking about the real issues in the Lisbon Treaty. We’ve spoken about Climate Change, Democracy, Green jobs, Human Trafficking, the need for better leadership from the EU in the world and the positive effect that Irish and European Peacekeeping missions have had in war- torn countries. We have driven the debate week by week through factual research, logical argument and constant references back to what this debate is about: a treaty agreed by 27 governments, forged in a spirit of cooperation that lays the groundwork for the EU to succeed into the future.

This campaign has seen nothing but lies and duplicity from the NO side, as they deviate further and further from the truth in an attempt to claim some relevance in the face of a well informed public supported by a YES campaign with the facts on their side. The calculated use of threats about the minimum wage, abortion and euthanasia which have no relation to the treaty serve as examples of the type of campaign run by the opposition: a campaign built on cynicism, deception and fear-mongering that we should not allow to win.

Ireland has a proud tradition of making decisions through referenda. Just as representative democracy stands as a symbol of the people putting their faith and trust in their representatives and the state, a referendum is the corresponding sign of the state and her elected representatives putting their faith and trust in Irish people. We know that the people of Ireland are worthy of that faith and trust.

This Friday, that greatest of responsibilities falls once again upon the people of Ireland- And it is vitally important that we turn out to exercise our franchise in the tens and thousands and millions: because that day will mark a crucial decision- a decision on Ireland’s future, the implications of which will ring for generations. In these final hours until the polls close on Friday night we must not succumb to complacency, or indeed to tiredness: but rather seize with both hands our final opportunity to win hearts and change minds.

In these final moments, speak to your friends, your family, your neighbours, hand out leaflets, tell the nice people on facebook that you are voting YES and why, join us for a few hours more canvassing in the streets of our biggest cities and smallest villages and finally, most importantly, on October 2nd: Get out and vote- and with resounding cry, join us in saying YES

The Lisbon Treaty helps us to tackle problems that have become too big for us to handle all on our own. Criminal gangs don’t respect Irish borders. We need greater European co-operation to tackle this problem. The Lisbon Treaty will promote this greater co-operation between EU police forces and judiciaries. After her murder, Veronica Guerin’s killers fled to Amsterdam. Thankfully, Veronica’s killers were brought to justice but only after a lengthy extradition battle. Crimes like this continue to be perpetrated in Ireland with murderers, human traffickers and drug lords escaping beyond the reach of our police. At present there are nine Irish gangs operating across Europe. These are controlled by crime lords sitting by swimming pools in villas along the Spanish coast.

The Articles:

• Article 83 of the Lisbon Treaty empowers the EU to co-operate in tackling “serious crime with a cross-border dimension”. These are activities such as drug smuggling, a growing problem that funds criminal gangs.
• This co-operation doesn’t have to entail significant changes to our criminal justice system but isn’t includes common-sense measures outlined in Article 87 such as training and exchange of staff and cooperation on equipment and on research into crime-detection. In terms of being able to tackle the problems of cross-border gang crime co-operation would mean “common investigative techniques in relation to the detection of serious forms of organised crime.”
• We need to protect the women and children who are being exploited by criminal gangs and trafficked as sex workers. It is often the young and vulnerable who are continually raped and abused in brothels for the financial gain of criminals. Article 79.2 of the Lisbon Treaty gives the EU the power to combat human trafficking in particular women and children

The EU under Lisbon will be better equipped to tackle the serious problems created by cross-border crime. Human-trafficking, drug-smuggling and money laundering need to be tackled by 27 member states together, not only by us on our own.  Lets co-operate to combat organised crime.

On October 2nd, Vote YES to Lisbon

It is just over a year since the Lisbon Treaty was rejected by the Irish people. In that time, sweeping changes have affected the lives of millions of people across the world. At the core of these changes has been the transformation of the international financial system. Described as one of a kind in the century, the crisis has completely reshaped the contour of world finance.

There is little doubt that the Irish financial regulator failed at the task of ensuring that the financial system here was on sound footing. However, Ireland was not a unique case of oversight failure. Many other European states also adopted a ‘light-touch’ approach and regarded overly-stringent regulation as the antithesis of competition. Over the past three decades the most difficult task of the financial regulator has been to keep up with the changing marketplace that he or she is supposed to be regulating.

Regulation, once a tainted phrase, is now championed as the antidote to the world’s economic woes. The previous system of ‘light-touch’ regulation enabled financial institutions to take huge gambles which have left us in the current mess. The lessons of the 1998 East-Asian financial crisis were apparently not heeded. The establishment of a regulatory framework for the European financial sector is paramount but it requires input from all member states. We need far better cross-border regulation that necessitates cross-border consultation between central bankers and other government and finance officials.

Financial integration, in particular within Europe, has made such progress that a bank’s failure has repercussions not only for the taxpayers of the country where the bank is incorporated but also for those in other countries. This applies not only to banks with cross-border activities but also to those with mainly national operations that have a high exposure to the banks of other countries, in particular through the money market. Bank insolvencies can be highly contagious and spread throughout the single financial system. (*1) Much of the current crisis is down to such cross-border financial integration. The European Commission has figured that the direct fiscal costs of the current crisis in the EU” at between 2.75 and 14 percent of the bloc’s gross domestic product (GDP). This amounts to a staggering 1.8 trillion Euros. (*2)

The system whereby banks in one country were ruled by a set of rules different to those in others was simply not compatible with a system that operated worldwide. For a modern financial system to work certain regulations must be homogenised across states. The legitimacy and effectiveness of the whole financial system is at stake should this fail to take place. Failure to implement the current recommendations for pan-European financial regulation would make future recessions ever more likely.

Up until now, international financial regulation has proceeded by trial and error, regulatory innovations typically following financial shocks. (*3) The need for better regulation, especially in the financial sector, is an ongoing challenge and not one that should be a sporadic priority for governments. The stability of the financial sector is too important for the European economy for governments to be complacent. That is why the current recommendations for reform are vital. Yet they may not be implemented. ECB executive director, Lorenzo Bini Smaghi, said improvements in financial markets might remove the sense of urgency for reform and allow “nationalistic tendencies and institutional jealousies” to re-emerge. (*4)

Apart from a provision in Article 64.3 TFEU which allows the Council to place extra controls on capital flows between the EU and external states, there are no references to financial regulation in the Common Market. More importantly, however, it sets in place a decision-making dynamic that is currently hampered by delay and inertia. A more reflexive and efficient EU would be better able to respond to crises like the current economic recession. This is important if Europe is to avoid another financial meltdown

As a small, open highly globalised economy, it is in Ireland’s best interests that sound international financial oversight be put in place as soon as possible. However, for efficient regulation the domain of the regulator should be the same as the domain of the market that is regulated. None of the standard tasks of a financial regulator – authorization, the provision of information, surveillance, enforcement, and the development of policy – are currently performed in a coherent manner in international markets.

The EU is in the process of rectifying this imbalance. During a meeting of the EU Council in Brussels last month, EU leaders agreed a number of measures including the creation of a “European Systemic Risk Board” as well as two other pan-European regulatory bodies to control banks, insurers and securities markets. The goal is to improve cross-border cooperation on financial supervision. The European Council, however, stresses that decisions taken by the European Supervisory Authorities should not impinge in any way on the fiscal responsibilities of member states individual nations’ supervisors will still have the final word. (*5)

The recent De Larosiere report into future pan-European financial regulation also outlines how the organisation and supervision of financial institutions and markets in the EU will take shape. It demonstrates how to strengthen European cooperation on financial stability oversight, early warning and crisis mechanisms and how EU supervisors should cooperate globally. The Group strongly supports the view that there should be a single set of core regulatory rules and supervisory standards in the EU – and lists examples where this is not the case with the current rulebook. It recommends that a clear and transparent framework must be immediately established to manage a crisis – and that all Member States must have the same set of tools and procedures. Finally, the report emphasizes the opportunity and need for the EU to deepen its bilateral financial relations with all its major partners.

This is an opportunity for global EU leadership to seize. However, without the Lisbon Treaty in place, a unified response to a situation that affects all member states of the EU cannot be realised. There are too many voices each drowning out the other. Ensuring that the EU is able to speak with one voice on matters that affect all member states is a necessary step for recovery.

If you want to give the EU the tools to respond to today’s problems today, before they take root, Vote YES on October 2nd.

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FOOTNOTES
(*1) http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/068622e0-5e8c-11de-91ad-00144feabdc0.html?nclick_check=1
(*2) http://ec.europa.eu/economy_finance/publications/publication_summary15289_en.htm
(*3) Prasad, B.R., (2009), ‘Financial regulation: rising to the challenge’, Macroeconomics and Finance in Emerging Market Economies, 2:1, 155 — 173
(*4) http://www.independent.ie/business/irish/ecb-chief-fears-economic-upturn-could-wreck-prospects-for-reform-1781434.html
(*5) http://www.number10.gov.uk/Page19704

Trade is vital for Ireland. While we only have 0.06% of the world’s population, Irish export trade accounts for a disproportionately large 0.87% of the world’s trade in goods and 2.66% of the world’s trade in services. Export trade makes up a massive 89% of GDP. Joining the European Union gave Ireland unlimited access to the world’s most important market for trade in services and second most important market for trade in goods. The Lisbon Treaty strengthens this hugely important connection.

The Gateway to Europe

In business, perceptions matter: a recent survey showed that a Yes to Lisbon is important to 89% of Irish exporters.(*1)  No wonder: 63.4% of our export trade is with the EU. 198,000 Irish jobs are directly related to EU trade and another 200,000 Irish jobs are indirectly related to EU trade. Most of those jobs are created by foreign companies, investing in Ireland because we are an English-speaking gateway to the EU market. US firms have invested $87 billion in Ireland. Intel, which employs over 5,500 people in Ireland, chose to invest here because of Ireland’s “full embrace of its connection to the EU”. The American Chamber of Commerce in Ireland strongly supports the Lisbon Treaty. A Yes to Lisbon sends a signal to Intel, and to other major employers, that Ireland is a central player in Europe and the right place to invest. These figures show clearly that trade is important to Ireland- trade that has grown and developed through the EU. Trade will continue without Lisbon- but ratification is another step forward in a mutually beneficial relationship.

A more dynamic, responsive Europe under the Lisbon Treaty will help ensure the recovery of our banking sector. Perhaps more importantly, it will ensure that the EU is equipped to act to stop another crisis occurring. This is vital for small countries like Ireland that were struck particularly hard by the crisis. Foreign investment is more important for us than for almost any other country: it makes up a massive 81.2% of our GDP, compared to a global average of only 24.8%. Ratifying Lisbon will help to ensure this investment continues into the future, by restoring the confidence of businesses that were attracted to Ireland for its access to Europe

Ireland’s Clout in External Trade Policy

36.6% of our export trade is with countries outside the EU, 17.8% of that with the US. Lisbon will help us make the most of these valuable trading relationships. Currently, the direction of EU external trade policy is set solely by officials in the European Commission. The Lisbon Treaty improves this situation. Under Lisbon, Irish MEPs and Irish government Ministers will have significant influence over the direction of trade policy. While the Commission will still be responsible for negotiating trade agreements, officials will have to report regularly to our elected representatives. Further, small states are given extra power in the council and there are provisions to make sure a small number of large states can’t push an agenda.(*2) When agreements on services or foreign direct investment touch on sensitive issues like financial regulation and monetary policy, Ireland will have a complete veto.(*3) We also have a legal guarantee that we retain complete control over tax policy.
 
Failure to ratify Lisbon can only be bad for Ireland’s economic situation, but the more important fact is that it represents a missed opportunity. Exports and trade will be the base for Irish growth and renewal. Lisbon promotes this agenda. Through the EU we can regain our economic strength and start to build the trade links that will pull us out of the economic crisis.

On October 2nd, Ireland has an opportunity: let’s take it.
 
_______________________
(*1) - In a survey of 500 employers, some of whom were not exporters.
(*2) - Articles 188C and 188N of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union.
(*3) - Article 105 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union.

There’s a reason that some of the country’s largest employers and trade unions, our most successful business figures, and leading economists have rowed in behind a Yes vote on Lisbon. EU membership has been a singular factor in creating jobs and growth in Ireland over the last 36 years.

Many on the No side have claimed that economic arguments for a Yes vote are fear-based nonsense; given this, the best way to start is by pointing to some economic successes.

Ireland has been, and remains, one of the most successful countries in the world at attracting Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) from other countries. Our FDI/GDP ratio has consistently been one of the highest in the EU 27 (*1), and it’s a simple fact that most of the companies that have come here have come to export conveniently to Europe (*2). How do we know this? Because Ireland exports more to Europe - nearly two-thirds of our total exports (*3) - than we do to anywhere else.

Exports are what will get the economy out of recession. Over the last year, construction, industrial output, tax receipts, and GDP, all went through the floor (*4). Exports fell by a mere 1%: not bad in the midst of a global recession.

But what has this got to do with Lisbon? Well, when you read all those seemingly vague posters around the country saying ‘Ireland needs to be at the heart of Europe’ and so on, this is probably what they mean. A No vote will damage our international reputation, worrying companies who have come here specifically because of our European identity. This sabotages the very thing that will provide for sustainable growth in Ireland in years to come.

But this seems like more of a ‘don’t vote no’ argument, than a ‘vote Yes’ argument. What’s actually in the Lisbon Treaty that will benefit Ireland economically? Well, a lot of things.

Firstly, Lisbon contains explicit protection for workers’ rights (*5). It commits the member states to working toward the goal of full employment for the first time (Article 3 TEU),. The Lisbon Treaty’s provisions on investment in green industry, space policy and technology (Articles 194 and 189 TFEU) will play to Ireland’s strengths, as we are well-suited as an economy to take advantage of these opportunities to create the kind of sustainable, high-wage jobs the country needs.

But what about all those arguments that the minimum wage will plummet if we vote yes? Rubbish. No European treaty allows the EU to set minimum wages (*6), and Lisbon specifically says that powers not explicitly given to the EU by the member states stay with the member states (*7). In fact, real wages (i.e. wages adjusted for inflation) have grown in every EU country (*8) over the last 10 years. Workers’ protections in countries like France and Germany are far more extensive than what they are in Ireland (*9). The group who put up the €1.84 posters admitted that they simply took the average minimum wages of the 12 recently-joined countries (*10), conveniently leaving out the track record of wage growth (an average of 2.6% per year over the last ten years (*11)) across the EU, or the fact that our minimum wage is specifically protected as an area that only our Government can control.

Second, voting YES gives us a stronger voice in world trade policy. This is specifically important given the ongoing round of World Trade Organisation talks. Allied with farmers in France, Spain, Denmark and elsewhere, Ireland has had far, far more clout and ability to protect our farmers than we would have had on our own. Ireland is not alone in Europe - our values and concerns are shared by many other states. Lisbon, through its Common Commercial Policy (*12), strengthens this cooperation even further, and will help secure the nations’ farms, as well as the livelihoods of rural communities.

A Yes vote will also formalise the previously informal arrangement of Eurozone members to coordinate international financial policy in Eurozone countries, which will be crucial to navigating our way out of the global recession. It also gives this group a specific mandate regarding ‘issues arising in international financial institutions.’ (*13) This guarantees us a stronger voice in institutions like the IMF, something we in this country are in sore need of if we are to secure ourselves from international banking crises in years to come.

Voting Yes will also mean that, for the first time, the EU will be legally obliged to have a multi-year budgetary framework (Article 312 TFEU), meaning that the EU will legally have to plan its budget years in advance. This helps us to avoid spending like lunatics during a boom, then raising taxes during a recession.

More generally, our vote on Lisbon has to do with how we see our future in an economically globalised world. A Yes vote is about projecting renewed confidence, and a willingness to get back on our feet after a series of hard economic knocks.

Since the 1950s, Ireland has fought hard for economic independence, and harder still for prosperity. Everything that is best and strongest about our economy has come from our sustained embrace of global commerce, trade and competition. This - more than anything else - has been the raison d’etre of the EU; and now - more than any time previously - is not the time to turn our backs on it.

A Yes vote will provide a clear signal that Ireland remains open for business; as well as helping us, in many concrete and practical ways, to get our economy back on track.

If you want to get Ireland back to work, Vote YES on October 2nd.

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Footnotes
(*1) EIU Country Data (Ireland’s stock of FDI/GDP ratio has been in the top 5 in the EU27 over the last 10 years. It is second from top on average over the last 10 years among the EU27 (leaving out financial clearing-house Luxembourg).
(*2) Economist Intelligence Unit, Ireland Country Profile, 2008. pg 29 & pg 32.
(*3) Economist Intelligence Unit, Ireland Country Report, September 2009, pg. 17.
(*4) Central Statistics Office, Quarterly National Accounts, 30 June 2009
(*5) http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/opinion/2009/0901/1224253586804.html
http://www.generationyes.ie/2009/09/01/an-honest-debate-on-the-real-treaty-provisions/
http://www.impact.ie/iopen24/newsdesk_info.php?newsdesk_id=265
(*6)EU Commission Vice-President Margot Wallstrom. http://www.herald.ie/national-news/dont-vote-no-to-lisbon-just-to-make-a-protest-at-your-own-government-1885079.html.
(*7) Article 4.1 TEU.
(*8) EIU Country Data.
(*9) Huber, Evelyn, Ragin, Charles and Stephens, John D. 1993. Social Democracy, Christian Democracy, Constitutional Structure, and the Welfare State. American Journal of Sociology 99: 3, 711-749
(*10) http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/ireland/2009/0901/1224253588969.html
(*11) EIU Country Data.
(*12) Article 207 (ex Article 133 TEC).
(*13) Article 138.1-2 (ex Article 111(4), TEC)

The twin crises of economic recession and environmental degradation are the most significant challenges facing Ireland today. With the second highest unemployment rate in the EU-15 and the second highest level of CO2 emissions per person in the EU-25, it is clear that a serious rethink of Ireland’s employment and environmental policies is needed. Investment in the green economy is the only way to tackle both issues at the same time; and the green economy is about to take off.

A recent study by Forfás estimated the Environmental Goods and Services sector in Ireland at €2.8 billion in 2008. By contrast, the global sector was worth €600 billion in 2005 and is expected to hit €800 billion in 2015. Given Ireland’s extensive natural renewable energy resources, “green” image and strong IT base, the potential for significant growth in Ireland’s EGS (Environmental Goods and Services) industry and the creation of new jobs in the sector is clear.

So what impact would the Lisbon Treaty have on Ireland’s future green jobs market? The answer is three-fold. First, Lisbon makes fighting climate change an explicit objective of the Union for the first time. It also extends Europe’s capabilities in the area of energy and energy networks. Moreover, in its external relations, the EU would have a responsibility to “preserve and improve the quality of the environment and the sustainable management of global natural resources, in order to ensure sustainable development’ (Article 10A, TEU). This means sustainable development and the protection of the environment would be an underlying value for all future relations with other countries.

As the major driver for Ireland’s Environmental Goods and Services industry, EU policy is essential to Ireland’s green jobs market. Already we have seen significant investment and job creation in areas such as renewable energies, energy efficiency and eco-construction (including retrofitting) as well as environmental consultancy and management. The Lisbon Treaty strengthens the EU’s hand in policy areas relevant to the greentech industry and would therefore ensure that this important impetus continues to foster growth in Irish green jobs.

The second reason why the Lisbon Treaty is good for the green jobs market in Ireland relates to the European common market. In the past, the common market has proven to be instrumental in creating Irish jobs, providing a market for Irish exports and attracting foreign direct investment. Given that Europe has the most progressive environmental policies in the world, the potential for Irish exports to Europe is even greater than before.

The ratification of the Lisbon Treaty would ensure that Ireland remains a major player in the European market and a desirable destination for green foreign direct investment. In particular, the emphasis on a European energy market and the interconnection of national energy networks would ensure that Ireland is able to sell its surplus electricity produced through renewables to other European countries.

Finally, the Lisbon Treaty encourages green jobs through the promotion of research and the improved protection of intellectual property rights. Innovation-led growth has become increasingly central to Ireland’s economy and investment in ‘cleantech’ research will be necessary to exploit the significant opportunities that exist in areas such as battery technology, like Limerick’s Charles Parson Initiative and smart grid applications such as Cool Power’s EMMA smart meter. The Lisbon Treaty highlights R&D collaboration through the new objective of “achieving a European research area in which researchers, scientific knowledge and technology circulate freely and encouraging it to become more competitive, including in its industry” (Article 163, TFEU). This increased level of cooperation among European researchers, together with a commitment to the exchange of best practice, would help bolster the number of Irish “green collar” workers as new opportunities are created through green innovation and growth.

Of course innovations need protection so that the ensuing economic rewards can be reaped by innovators and researchers. Under Lisbon, Irish cleantech innovations receive greater protection through the creation of new European-wide intellectual property rights. This means that Irish entrepreneurs could apply for a single, centrally-enforceable European patent, rather than the current European patent that is only enforceable on a national level. The new patent would ensure that Irish cleantech innovation is properly rewarded and incentivised, thus securing vital investment.

The future of Ireland’s economic and environmental success lies in the green economy. The Lisbon Treaty supports and promotes the green economy and full employment (Article 3.3 TEU) and takes tangible steps to create green jobs in Ireland.

In short, if you want more Irish green-collar jobs, greater investment in green technologies and for Ireland to emerge as a world-leading green economy: Vote YES.

The United Kingdom Independence Party (UKIP), a byword across Europe for right-wing extremism, xenophobia and bigotry, today launched its campaign to persuade Irish voters to vote No in our own referendum. Nigel Farrage, the leader of UKIP, was in Ireland to launch his party’s drive to send anti-EU booklets to 1.5 million Irish homes. While they claim the booklet is produced by the European Freedom and Democracy Group, UKIP’s own website says “UKIP will send a leaflet to every Irish home urging a no in the Lisbon Treaty”. That sounds to us like UKIP claiming responsibility.

Generation YES are outr­aged at this intervention by foreign interests into this crucial debate on Ireland’s vital national interests. We can be sure that UKIP are promoting their own repugnant agenda, with no concern for the welfare of the ordinary people of Ireland. They want to use the Irish referendum for their own ends – to get England out of the EU. They seek to dismantle the Belfast Agreement (*1), reintroduce the death penalty (*2) and abolish social security (*3), they prevent disabled people from standing for election on their ticket (*4), and they also deny climate change (*5) and the Holocaust (*6). We need to reject these offensive people, and to continue our own progressive, positive relationship with Europe that has served us so well.

One of the most repulsive aspects of UKIP’s stance on Lisbon is its racist immigration policy. Their literature states that Lisbon will mean the accession of Turkey to the EU, and insinuates that this will bring the mass immigration of 75 million people (just about the entire population of Turkey), who they argue will steal all CAP’s benefits for our farmers (they fail to mention that elsewhere they argue for the abolition of the CAP (*7)). In fact Turkey is not mentioned anywhere in the Lisbon Treaty.

Lisbon makes no changes to the mechanism for or criteria of accession for new members. This is a fact. Currently Turkey does not meet the accession criteria - so even if all the states were agreed on Turkish entry- they could not join the EU. Most importantly of all, many states do not support Turkish entry: and the decision has to be unanimous.

The two articles which UKIP quote as “giv[ing] the EU full control over immigration” are Articles 67 and 79 of the TFEU. The first of these provides for the “absence of internal border controls for persons” and the “fram[ing] of a common policy on asylum, immigration and external border control”. This first point deals with the free movement of people and resources across borders within Europe. This benefits us all – in bad times Irish workers have been able to seek good jobs abroad, while during the boom Ireland had a shortfall of workers which was filled by immigrants from other parts of the EU. Now that we are again in recession these workers are going home.

It is a sad irony that also in this Article 67 is a clause calling for “measures to prevent and combat crime, racism and xenophobia” – the last two of which constitute the ideological foundations of the UK Independence Party.

The second point they raise, Article 79, explicitly contains a clause stating:

“This Article shall not affect the right of Member States to determine volumes of admission of third-country nationals coming from third countries to their territory to seek work, whether employed or self-employed.”

This blatantly disproves their cynical assertion that the EU will now have full control over immigration.

The fact is that on immigration policy Lisbon introduces reform and bolsters the control of European borders. We are failing miserably to deal with immigration issues on our own. We are all familiar with news stories about detention centres where asylum seekers are sometimes confined for long periods suffering from chronic overcrowding and food shortages. This situation is in no one’s interest.

This is because immigration is an inherently cross-border issue. Lisbon aims to ensure a “global and integrated approach” to this area. It makes decision-making in this area more efficient (Article 16 TEU), and ensures greater democratic accountability by making the European Parliament an equal decision-making partner (Article 14).  Article 79.1 commits the EU to “the efficient management of migration flows, fair treatment of third-country nationals… and enhanced measures to combat, illegal immigration and trafficking in human beings.”

The Treaty also makes sure we take into account the need to protect human rights as well as to secure our borders. Article 68 TFEU states that, “The Union shall constitute an area of freedom, security, and justice with respect for fundamental rights.” Article 78.1 TFEU will require compliance with the Geneva Convention on Refugees and Article 6 TEU will make the Charter on Fundamental Rights legally binding.

Lisbon joins up immigration policy with the related areas of development and foreign affairs to attack the root causes of illegal immigration, and make sure our overall approach is coherent and cost-effective. Article 27 TEU creates the position of the High Representative for Foreign Affairs, to help coordinate policy on immigration law, cross-border crime, development policy and foreign affairs. Article 21.2 TEU makes eradication of poverty a primary aim of the Union’s development policy, which is strongly supported by many of the world’s poverty NGO’s, including Trócaire and Concern.

The urgent need to form a coherent EU policy in this area is clear. Groups like UKIP, however, are opportunistically invading Ireland to push their own racist and xenophobic agenda, which is not in Ireland’s or Europe’s interests. The Lisbon Treaty will not affect our right to control our levels of immigration. It has no effect on the accession of new members. The Treaty is unequivocal on these points. It will help us to control our borders. Anyone who says otherwise is simply lying.

We have to face down the interfering extremists who are trying to subvert our democratic system from the outside.

Don’t listen to the self serving lies of UKIP who have no mandate here.

Listen to the facts. Vote Yes on October 2nd.
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Footnotes
(*1) Policy Statement, How We Are Governed, July 2008
(*2) Batten, Gerard, UKIP Press release, 4 August 2005
(*3) UKIP Manifesto for the 2004 European elections
(*4) The Guardian, 28 February 2007
(*5) Reed, Steve, Yorkshire Post, 5 August 2004
(*6) McConnachie, Alastair, The Scotsman, 27 March 2000
(*7) Titford, Jeffrey, UKIP Press Release, 21 May 2008

Ringsend

Energy is what drives us forward. We use it to go places, heat and cool water, heat our homes, produce, store and cook food and power our many gadgets. Energy prices are equally important as high prices affect the competitiveness of our economy by driving up business energy costs. And there’s the small matter of the €6 billion we spend on importing energy every year, money that would be far better spent on indigenous renewable energy. So the security of Ireland’s energy supply is an important issue for all of us. The Lisbon Treaty brings about significant changes that will help secure Ireland’s energy supply into the future.

According to the International Energy Agency, energy prices and energy security are becoming “major concerns” for Ireland, due largely to our overdependence on imported fossil fuels.  Research by Sustainable Energy Ireland shows that in 2007 we were 79% dependent on imported energy. Scarily, transport was 99% dependent on foreign fuel. This leaves us dangerously exposed to supply disruption and volatile energy markets that are beyond our control.

The most crucial change brought about by Lisbon is the explicit statement of the objective to “ensure security of energy supply in the EU” (Article 194.1, TFEU). The inclusion of this statement makes energy security a clear aim of the EU and obliges the Union to work towards a more secure supply of energy. Another important measure is the provision to share powers on energy policy between the EU and national governments, leading to a more coherent, coordinated energy policy for the EU. At the moment, Russia negotiates with EU countries separately and only the larger states have the bargaining power to get good prices. A united European stance on energy policy would give smaller countries like Ireland an incredible amount of influence in negotiations with gas giants like Russia. Better bargaining power ultimately leads to lower energy prices and cheaper energy bills for you and me.

The promotion of renewable energies and energy efficiency, direct objectives outlined in the Lisbon Treaty, will go further in reducing Ireland’s overall energy demand and reliance on imported energy. Interconnection with the electricity networks of other European countries (Article 194.1, TFEU) is also needed if we are to be able to rely on our neighbours for surplus electricity in times of need.

Energy supply and prices affect us all. Voting YES to Lisbon is the best way to guarantee a secure energy supply while we wean ourselves off our national addiction to fossil fuels.

Today, there is a growing acceptance that issues like climate change and water pollution affect all of us: ‘business as usual’ is no longer an option. We need stronger international cooperation as well as effective domestic measures if we are going to succeed in protecting our environment. The Lisbon Treaty aims to do just that.

The Lisbon Treaty makes great strides in protection and improvement of our environment. In addition to general provisions on the environment, the Treaty also contains measures on climate change and energy policy. Under the Lisbon Treaty, protection and improvement of the environment and sustainable development would become underlying values, not just within the EU but also in its relations with the wider world (Article 3, TEU). This article is also significant in that it contains the objective of “improvement of the quality of the environment”, rather than just preservation of the environment, for the first time. But the Lisbon Treaty goes even further than this. Adoption of the Charter of Fundamental Rights would make “a high level of environmental protection” a fundamental right of EU citizens.

The Irish government fought for a direct reference to climate change in the Lisbon Treaty and thanks to their efforts, combating climate change will be an explicit objective of the European Union (Article 191, TFEU). The global nature of climate change demands strong international cooperation and the insertion of this clause provides the legal basis for greater collaboration both among Member States and with other countries and regions.

Unfortunately, it is now inevitable that some effects of climate change will be felt around the world, particularly in vulnerable areas. As a result, it is just as important to adapt to climate change as it is to try to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Yvo de Boer, head of the UN Climate Change Secretariat, recently stated that climate change will lead to an increase in floods, heat waves, droughts and storms. Evidence is also emerging that increased levels of greenhouse gases may also affect the geology of the Earth, potentially resulting in earthquakes, tsunamis, avalanches and volcanic eruptions. Not good. Consequently, the provisions in articles 21 (TEU) and articles 122, 196, 214 and 222 (TFEU) of the Lisbon Treaty that relate to assisting with natural or man-made disasters are crucial. These changes will allow the EU to coordinate responses to natural disasters and will go a long way in protecting some of the most vulnerable people in the world, like people living in low-lying areas and regions in danger of malaria outbreaks.

Climate change is inextricably linked with energy. In 2007, 86% of the EU’s greenhouse gases were energy-related. The biggest change that the Lisbon Treaty brings about is shared responsibility of energy policy between Member States and the Union. As with climate change, energy is a policy best pursued at an international level and this argument becomes even stronger for smaller countries like Ireland. As part of the EU, Ireland gains a greater voice and control over important issues such as security of energy supply and coordination of EU efforts on improving the environmental record of energy generation.

The Lisbon Treaty will ensure that energy policy is enacted “with regard for the need to preserve and improve the environment” (Article 194, TFEU), thus underlining the need to reduce all energy-related environmental damage, including greenhouse gas emissions, other forms of air pollution and fossil fuel extraction. And the Treaty goes even further, setting out the promotion of energy efficiency and energy savings as significant elements of energy policy. Needless to say, progress in energy efficiency goes hand in hand with the fight against climate change.

Finally, the Lisbon Treaty empowers the EU to draw up legislation for the continued development of renewable sources of energy. Andris Piebalgs, European Commissioner for Energy recently stated that Ireland has the largest wind and tidal energy resources in all of Europe. The capture of this energy is an incredible opportunity for Ireland, not only for the environment but also for our economy and jobs market. Green-collar jobs will be created in areas such as the design and construction of wind turbines and smart electricity networks.

Under article 194 of Lisbon, the electricity grid will become more connected with other national grids, allowing us to export energy when we have a surplus. Greater interconnection is crucial for the success of renewable energies because the larger the grid, the easier it is to level out the peaks and dips in supply that are inherent in renewable energies. The Lisbon Treaty recognises how important this is for a successful renewable energy strategy.

Ireland is not going to solve environmental issues like climate change and renewable energy by itself. We can have a bigger impact and a bigger voice as part of the EU than we ever could alone. The EU is leading the world in environmental protection, climate change and renewable energy generation. The Lisbon Treaty gives the EU the tools to strengthen these roles and continue our work towards a high level of environmental protection, while equipping Ireland to take advantage of jobs and growth in the green economy.

Is fiú agus is féidir. Let’s start: VOTE YES.