Lisbon Treaty vote 'a defining moment', says Martin

The second Lisbon Treaty referendum will be a defining moment for Ireland, Foreign Affairs Minister Micheál Martin warned today.

The minister told the Humbert Summer School that rejecting the charter again in October would damage the country’s chances of attracting vital jobs.

“It will make a fundamental statement about our future. As such it is more important than party allegiance, interest groups or local issues,” Mr Martin said.

“It deserves a serious national debate where people who feel strongly get involved in the campaign and the public engages with the issues.”

Mr Martin said supporting the treaty was paramount in helping to pull the country out of recession.

He accused those who claim the charter would not help create jobs of never being involved in attracting investment.

“There is simply no question that a rejection of the Lisbon Treaty by Ireland after receiving clear guarantees on our concerns would seriously damage this advantage,” he said.

“It’s not capable of being quantified at this point, but we can be sure that those who claim that a 'No' vote will be irrelevant to investment and job creation have never been involved in negotiating investment and job creation.”

The Humbert in Co Mayo, one of the country’s leading summer schools, will run until Sunday.

This year’s event will see victims of clerical child abuse honoured as well as journalist Mary Raftery, who helped uncover the scale of the scandal in institutions.

Judge Sean Ryan who headed the long-running inquiry into church and state run schools and reformatories will also be recognised.

The awards will be presented by Nobel Peace Laureate and school president, John Hume, during a day-long debate on child protection on Saturday.

Fine Gael leader Enda Kenny will deliver a speech tomorrow outlining the party’s approach to tackling the banking crisis.

Meanwhile, a new group opposing the Lisbon Treaty was launched today.

Farmers for No said it was critical that people vote no to secure the future of Irish agriculture.

Sinn Féin officially unveiled its 'No' campaign last week.