Thomas welcomes the referendum on the Fiscal Compact

Deputy Thomas Pringle says the advice of the Attorney General to hold a referendum on the European Fiscal Compact Treaty is the right advice and gives people their rightful say, stating that “I have advocated from day one of this debate that the people ofIrelandshould have their right to a referendum recognised as the Irish Constitution states”

“Democracy is founded in the rights of the people and the decision today facilitates the fundamentals of a functioning democracy”.

Pringle stated that the referendum debate should be one that is fair, accountable and reasoned, saying “all politicians and parties should avoid scaremongering and the politics of fear in their efforts to sway public opinion one way or the other and instead ensure that a mature and rational debate take place on the implications of the Treaty for the future of the State and its people.”

The compact agreed at special EU summit last month, proposes tough new budgetary discipline on each euro zone state, including near-zero public deficits. Twenty-five of the European Union’s 27 countries have signed up to the new treaty, with onlyBritainand theCzechRepublicopposed.

Deputy Pringle posed a question to government on the question of “will the Government accept the outcome? Or if we have a NO vote are we going to go through the previous re-runs when European referendums were rejected? Stating the government should commit publicly to taking the will of the people on the first result.

Irish voters rejected the Nice referendum in 2001. It was passed following a re-run in October 2002. The Lisbonreferendum was rejected in 2008, before being passed a year later after Irelandsecured a number of concessions.

Last week,Germany’s minister for European Affairs Michael Link confirmed that European Union negotiators sought to design the fiscal compact in such a way to avoid a referendum inIreland.

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