Ireland 'sleepwalking into loss of ECB voting rights'

Sinn Féin Dublin MEP Lynn Boylan has today accused the Government of "sleepwalking into Ireland’s loss of voting rights on the European Central Bank’s governing body".

Currently a system operates whereby each country gets one vote.

But Lithuania is joining the Eurozone in January and further expansion is planned in coming years, which is likely to lead to a dilution of voting rights.

“My colleague Pearse Doherty TD raised this with Finance Minister Michael Noonan in the Dáil in 2011," MEP Boylan said.

“At that time the Minister states that: 'Any change to the voting rights set out in Article 10 of the Statute would require the unanimous decision of the European Council.'

“Does this mean that Minister Noonan and the Government gave their consent to the loss of Ireland’s voting rights on the ECB Council?

“I am today calling on the Government to clarify this matter.

“The Irish Government have been sleepwalking into Ireland’s loss of voting rights at the European Central Banks governing body.

“The Taoiseach must raise this matter at the European Council as a matter of urgency.

“Only full voting rights for all eurozone member states is acceptable. Irish people should not have to accept second-class citizenship on the ECB because of the decisions and indecision of Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael.”

Former Junior Finance Minister Brian Hayes said that he will be asking for clarification from the President of the European Central Bank over Ireland's voting rights.

MEP Hayes says at the moment, it is not clear how it will affect Ireland.

"The original legislation meant that once the eurozone became 19 countries, which it will from January next when Lithuania joins, that a new rotation system will come into play and the smaller countries effectively will have to sit out one month in 12, or more, if the number of countries to 22.

"I do think it's important that the President of the ECB clarifies this."