Cowen: Yes vote to aid economic recovery

TAOISEACH Brian Cowen has urged every citizen to support the Lisbon Treaty in tomorrow’s referendum, insisting a Yes vote will help Ireland achieve economic recovery.

He said the referendum was not about him or his Government’s unpopularity, but Ireland’s relationship with the EU.

Speaking last night on RTÉ, Mr Cowen denied speculation he would step aside if the treaty was defeated again. Asked if a No vote would result in a change of government, he replied: “Absolutely not.”

Earlier, at Fianna Fáil’s final press conference, Mr Cowen said controversies such as budget cuts and the €1m golden handshake for former Fás boss Rody Molloy were issues “for other weeks and months”.

The Government had granted the lucrative pension package for Mr Molloy because it didn’t want“stasis” at Fás, Mr Cowen said, adding: “I believe that the people of Ireland see this treaty as being about their future. It is not about any particular issue or controversy of the day.”

Asked if he was worried national rage about such issues would affect the Yes vote, Mr Cowen said he was confident people would separate the referendum from these matters. “I’ve great faith, first of all, in the discernment of the Irish people to deal with this issue on the basis it’s important not only for the immediate future, but for years and decades. And secondly, of course, I believe that the people are looking at the merit of this treaty on its own basis.”

“I think everyone recognises the vote is not a ‘politics-as-usual’ issue. It’s about the future of the country. It’s not about me or the party or the Government.”

Mr Cowen also appeared to rule out the prospect of a third referendum if Lisbon is defeated again tomorrow.

Asked what the “plan B” would be in the event of another defeat, he responded: “Well, there won’t be a Lisbon Treaty – I mean, that’s for sure. I think what’s clear is we’ll face into a period of extraordinary uncertainty in Europe and for Europe, and what direction it would then take, and we could well see the development of a two-speed Europe or whatever.”

He rejected suggestions the No side had the momentum going into the vote, saying the evidence was that the number of people in favour of the treaty was increasing.

Asked why Lisbon would make a difference to one of the worst-performing economies in Europe, he said: “Two out of every three jobs in this country are depending on European markets. We need to maintain the goodwill we derive from that . . . and we need to make sure that we can continue to influence events at the European level because they affect us at the national level.”