The Treaty of Lisbon – Reasons for the Irish No Vote

Term Paper , 2009 , 19 Pages , Grade: 1,7

Politics - Topic: European Union

On June 12, 2.8 million Irish voters got the chance to move the European Union one step further by voting in favour of the Treaty of Lisbon. Ireland was the only European country that allowed its citizens to express their opinion on the Treaty by means of a referendum. Suspense was created by the fact that a non-ratification of only one country was enough to stop the whole treaty. Just a little more than half of the Irish people went to the polls so that eventually 860,000 no votes were enough to obtain a majority. Less than a million people were able stop a treaty which was supposed to make the EU and its institutions, regulations and law finally suitable for 27 member states and 492 million Europeans in a constantly changing world, facing new problems like terrorism and climate change. All member states of the EU had agreed on the Treaty of Lisbon and ratified it as they thought the EU urgently needed a modernisation of the European Institutions. The Treaty of Nice, which forms the present basis of the European Union and goes back to the fifties, and the Treaties of Rome cannot meet this challenge anymore.
Ireland is regarded as one of the “winners” of the European Union. For years, it experienced sustained economic growth, full employment and a rising GDP . Then what could be the reason the majority of the Irish people voted against the Treaty of Lisbon or did not even go to the polls, instead of voting in favour of a treaty that would have improved the strength of the EU to which Ireland owes so much?
More and more, the European Union struggles with the increasing problem that it has to defend its acceptance to European citizens. People turn away from the Community because they have got the feeling that they are ill-informed and their interests are less represented on the European then on the national level. There are huge divergences in the ideas about the EU, the politicians and the citizens have which has lead to disenchantment with politics. This paper claims that the Irish people did not reject the Treaty of Lisbon itself but were simply not able to assess the advantages and disadvantages of the Treaty of Lisbon because of missing independent information.

Inhaltsverzeichnis

• Introduction
• The Treaty of Lisbon
• Reasons for the Irish no vote
  • Actual changes for the Irish people due to the Treaty of Lisbon
  • Insufficient information
    • Insufficient information about the EU in general
    • Insufficient information about the Treaty of Lisbon
  • Misleading information
    • Misleading information by “Sinn Féin” and “Libertas”
    • Misleading information by further groups
• Conclusion
• References

Zielsetzung und Themenschwerpunkte

This paper aims to analyze the reasons behind the Irish no vote on the Treaty of Lisbon in 2008. It examines the potential benefits and drawbacks of the Treaty for Ireland and explores the role of information dissemination and public perception in shaping the outcome of the referendum.

• The Treaty of Lisbon's key provisions and their potential impact on Ireland
• The role of information and misinformation in influencing public opinion
• The impact of political campaigns and media coverage on the referendum outcome
• The implications of the Irish no vote for the future of the European Union
• The challenges of achieving consensus and public support for EU integration

Zusammenfassung der Kapitel

The introduction sets the scene by describing the atmosphere surrounding the Irish referendum on the Treaty of Lisbon. It highlights the significance of the vote and the potential consequences of a no vote. The paper then delves into the Treaty of Lisbon itself, outlining its key provisions and their potential impact on Ireland. The main focus of the paper is on the reasons behind the Irish no vote. This section examines various factors, including the lack of information, misleading information, and the role of political campaigns. The conclusion summarizes the findings and discusses the implications of the Irish no vote for the future of the European Union.

Schlüsselwörter

The keywords and focus themes of the text include the Treaty of Lisbon, the Irish referendum, public opinion, information dissemination, misinformation, political campaigns, and the future of the European Union. The paper examines the challenges of achieving consensus and public support for EU integration, particularly in the context of the Irish no vote.

• College: University of Hamburg
• Grade: 1,7
• Author: Ulrike Schneider (Author)
• Publication Year: 2009
• Pages: 19
• Catalog Number: V127442
• ISBN (eBook): 9783640351411
• ISBN (Book): 9783640351060
• Language: English
• Tags: Treaty, Lisbon, Reasons, Irish, Vote