Sarkozy urged to attend summer school public debate

One of the country's leading political summer schools has urged French president Nicolas Sarkozy to clear his diary and attend a public debate on the future of Europe.

The Humbert Summer School, named in memory of the French revolutionary general who landed in Co Mayo 110 years ago, is offering the president time to promote the rejected Lisbon Treaty.

Director John Cooney said it would give the president a chance to engage seriously with EU experts and the Irish public, who delivered a resounding "No" to Lisbon last month.

"Regretfully, President Sarkozy's short visit to Dublin has become so clouded in controversy over his call for a second referendum that his round-table with representatives of Yes and No campaigners sounds so pitiful," Mr Cooney said.

"His superficial engagement threatens to be unproductive, if not actually counterproductive."

The invitation was sent by letter to the French Ambassador's residence in Dublin.

The Humbert Summer School, first held 22 years ago, has organised a special Foreign Policy Forum to debate Europe after the Lisbon No vote.

Experts, including Libertas founder Declan Ganley, Fine Gael leader Enda Kenny and Labour's Eamon Gilmore are to spend two days thrashing out the problems Lisbon threw up and the reasons for the No vote.

The president planned a brief round-table meeting with both the Yes and No camps, including senior opposition politicians, but it is unclear whether it will go ahead.

Mr Gilmore snubbed the president, insisting he could not treat it as a serious discussion, although he remained open to more formal talks.

But Mr Cooney said: "The Humbert Summer School is offering him two days of informed and open-ended debate, not a fleeting three minutes.

"The Humbert Foreign Policy Forum is an ideal occasion, and location, for the French president and current president of the European Council, and his representatives, to engage seriously with a significant segment of Irish public opinion."