Lisbon II: The same old story but the ending will be a real cliffhanger

Another blessing for the Government is the fact that what you might call the moderate, pro-European but anti-Lisbon camp is largely leaderless. For all his egomania, Declan Ganley was a key factor in swaying undecided voters not to give their assent to a document they either felt they didn’t understand or suspected was deliberately obscure.

IF you think that women who are raped must be forced to go full term, or you don’t believe in military intervention under any circumstances whatsoever, or you hoped that killing the better part of 2,000 people would bring people together on this island, or you revere Leon Trotsky, the chances are you will be voting No on October 2.

If, on the other hand, you instinctively shun such extremism and you think the EU has significant achievements to its credit – a single market, democratising eastern Europe and strong environmental rules, to name but three – then you are likely to tell a pollster it’s your intention to vote Yes to Lisbon.