Roche rejects calls for early vote in second Lisbon referendum

EUROPEAN Affairs Minister Dick Roche has backed away from calls for an early vote on the second Lisbon referendum despite growing support for a yes vote.

Yesterday a poll found 51% of people would vote in favour of the Lisbon treaty if the referendum was held now. The Cabinet is considering scheduling the vote a lot sooner than the tentative October date.

However, yesterday Mr Roche said, while he appreciated Fine Gael MEP Colm Burke’s argument that an early yes vote would improve economic stability, he would not like to see it held in June.