Europe the only friend we’ve got in our hour of need — so vote Yes

WE don’t need Europe.

We’re bigger than that, richer. We’ve all got new cars, second homes. What do we need Europe for? After all, we’re the richest country in the world and our leaders have pretty well told us we can get on fine without any Lisbon Treaty.

Oops. As Mary O’Rourke used to say, that was then and this is now. All the signs are that we are ready to vote for Lisbon now. We’ve lost a bit of the arrogance we had a year or so ago, and we need all the friends we can muster.

The No side can bluster all they like about last weekend’s announcement of EU support for redundant Dell workers, but it was an incredibly tangible demonstration of the value of being part of a larger community.

And yet another reason to vote Yes. The truth is that in the past those in favour of a Yes vote may not have been as adept at spelling out the reasons Yes was important for us all, but there have always been far more good reasons to vote Yes than there are to vote No.

In fact, among everyone I’ve met I’ve only heard one real solid reason advanced for voting No. They want to punish the Government for the mess we’re in.

And people know in their hearts that that’s the worst possible reason for voting No. There might be a moment’s grim satisfaction in it, but we’ll all spend the next couple of years regretting that we’ve cut off our noses to spite our face. There’ll be time enough to punish the Government if we want to. Now is not the time.

Now is the time to make a statement, perhaps the only positive statement we can make about our own futures in the middle of the mess we’re in. As part of Europe, we’re part of something bigger than us, but also something to which we can add value. Over the years, as Europe has made its mark on us in all sorts of ways, so successive Irish leaders have made their mark on Europe.

Irish presidencies, down through the years, have been groundbreaking and important. Irish people play vital roles in every aspect of European life and government. By taking Europe seriously, Irish politicians have developed worldwide reputations at critical times — and that reputation in turn has helped them to garner European support for crucial Irish projects — like the peace process, for example.

The fact that we belong, that we really are a part of something that helps us to grow, is the first good reason for voting Yes.

I could give you lists of things that have happened over the years — regional funds, structural funds, cohesion funds — without which we wouldn’t be half the country we are.

But those things weren’t bribes or sweeties for the Irish.

They were all aimed at levelling Europe out, at helping the poorer parts to catch up with the richer parts, because that was a fundamental part of what Europe was all about.

It’s ironic that the catching-up succeeded so well that we ended up not just being richer than most of the other countries, but arrogant enough to turn Lisbon down in the first place. But if being part of Europe is the first good reason to vote Yes, here are few more.

First, we were worried (wrongly) that if we said Yes to Lisbon the first time, we would lose an Irish commissioner. I always thought this fear was a bit odd.

Here are two really difficult table quiz questions.

First, name the last four Irish commissioners and their portfolios.

Second, name just one thing — just one — that Charlie McCreevy has done for Ireland since he became commissioner.

But anyway, that problem has been fixed. Vote for Lisbon, and we’ll have a commissioner.

Then there is a real (and in my view potentially important) new measure in the Lisbon Treaty that ought to enhance the rights of citizens generally throughout Europe.

The citizen’s initiative, as it’s called, obliges the European Commission to consider seriously any proposition that is brought forward with the backing of one million signatures from a number of member states. You could imagine citizens using this power in a variety of ways — on issues like the environment, for example.

One of the most important aspects of the treaty, though, is the charter of fundamental rights. Now it cannot be said that the charter, in and of itself, confers new absolute rights. But it gives an incredibly important lead.

People with disabilities, elderly people, minorities and vulnerable groups of all kinds have always felt more supported in and by Europe than they frequently are by their own government.

In many ways, Europe led the way on, for example, equality for women.

The charter of fundamental rights is a logical progression of the direction Europe has been taking for years — a direction based on justice more than any other consideration.

And the charter will be strengthened when the EU as a whole accedes to the European convention on human rights. I find it impossible to imagine that anyone who believes in greater equality, in less discrimination, in building a society that is rooted in rights and responsibilities could ever bring themselves to vote against measures like these.

In passing, I have to say that the very existence of provisions like these makes it a complete mystery to me why people like Joe Higgins aren’t out there leading the Yes campaign instead of constantly arguing that a charter of fundamental rights will somehow be damaging to the rights of vulnerable people.

I HONESTLY believe that no matter what aspect of Irish life you consider, we will be better off if Europe is strengthened and made more efficient by a Yes vote and worse off if the opposite happens.

In fact our position, marginalised and made irrelevant by a No vote, could be a positively dangerous one to be in.

You only have to wonder how we’d have managed to get as far as we have in dealing with the banking crisis (and yes, I know we have a helluva long way to go) without the support of the European Central Bank. That’s when you realise we simply have to concentrate on what Ireland needs right now.

Europe certainly needs a Yes vote from us. Anything else will generate a substantial political crisis that will affect everything Europe does and says for the next couple of years — at precisely the time we need Europe to be at its most coherent.

And if Europe needs a Yes vote from us, well, there has never been a moment in our history when we needed Europe’s help and support more.

Voting No right now would be a monumental kick in the teeth to our best friends. Nobody else is going to bail us out, nobody else is going to stand by us. Right now, more than ever, a Yes vote is in our national interest.

In fact, it’s the only way we can serve our national interest as a people. Vote Yes. For all our sakes.