EU Treaty rejection could isolate Ireland

IRELAND could find itself isolated in Europe if it rejects the new Treaty, Commissioner Charlie McCreevy has warned.

The country is likely to be the only member state where the so-called Reform Treaty is put to a referendum. The vote is expected to be early next year.

With all political parties supporting the document the former finance minister said he expected it to be agreed to by the voters. But he warned that following the rejection of the Nice Treaty six years ago nothing could be taken for granted.

If Ireland were the only country to vote against the new Treaty, the country could find itself in difficulties, he said.

“When France and the Netherlands rejected the Constitution, the clock was stopped. But if it was a small country like Ireland and Ireland was the only one to reject it, I do not think we would be given the same latitude”, he said speaking on RTÉ radio yesterday.

Today in Brussels EU foreign ministers will launch what they hope will be the final phase of putting together the new Treaty.

Over the coming weeks Taoiseach Bertie Ahern will have to decide whether Ireland will sign up to the entire Reform Treaty, or opt out of a number of areas.

This week lawyers from each member state will begin work to finalise the Treaty details as agreed by the leaders at their summit in Brussels last month. They aim to finish it by October and have the 27 member states ratify it before elections to the European Parliament in June 2008.

Ireland has put in a formal reservation on the Charter of Fundamental Rights, which is part of the Treaty, and on its participation in areas of justice. In the new document, some areas of justice, now the preserve of governments, would require them to share agreement with the European Parliament. Britain has said it will opt out of the justice area and normally Ireland follows them, as both share the common law system and co-operate very closely.

The Reform Treaty retains most of the Constitution that had to be ditched when Dutch and French voters rejected it three years ago. It will change voting rules and Commission size to improve the functioning of the enlarged EU and will create a full-time foreign minister and EU president in 2009, a job in which Mr Ahern may be interested.