Lisbon Treaty.

So today just over more than 3 million voters will go to the polls here in Ireland to decide whether to accept or reject the Lisbon Treaty. We are the only EU country to hold a referendum on it. The treaty has been approved in most other EU countries but not by allowing people to vote on it, it has been approved by the parliaments and not by the people which is disgraceful. So just over 3 million voters in Ireland will decide on behalf of the 500 million EU citizens whether to accept the treaty or not.

This treaty will decide on how the EU is goverened which is important to every person in the EU. If it is rejected here the treaty will not come in to affect. One of the worrying aspects of the treaty is that the right to nominate an EU commissioner will rotate amound states meaning that for 5 out of every 15 years we will be without a commissioner (this will be the same for every country). As it stands now every EU state has a commissioner at all times. I' m still not sure whether to accept it or reject it.

I can haz pros and cons list? I know next to nothing about it. What' s your spin on it Duff?

Yeah, relinquishing your right to nominate a commissioner for 5 years out of every 15 years sounds like a bad idea.

It is just another large step down the road to a corrupt, corpulent bureaucratic US of E; the gradual erosion of national self-determination is something we should be fighting against.

It looks like it got rejected

excellent, if only the remaining countries governments stop rubber stamping this treaty as well now.

it got rejected becuase nobody knew what it was, what it did or who it affected. I didnt vote, becuase I didnt know what it was, even the stuff in the mail didnt explain any of it.

Change is inevitable. Except from a vending machine.

Viva La Revolution! erm, I mean Viva La Wii!

I think it is important that Ireland voted against it. Not because I agree/disagree with the Lisbon Treaty but because the way this treaty has been pushed through is simply wrong. Ireland is, after all the ONLY country that got to vote in this and considering what a big change the Treaty of Lisbon would bring, it needs a vote in every country.

All the rest of you should buy the Irish a nice drink for good looking out.