A referendum on the Lisbon Treaty has been a hotly debated topic in recent years and has resulted in the creation of blogs, lobbyists and the inevitable Facebook groups. The treaty, which is seen as a constitution in the eyes of some, moves towards a unified and single Europe, a positive in the eyes of many, as it aims to improve cooperation between member states, gives residents of said member states the opportunity to travel and work between member states and generally acts as a safeguard and a preemptive strike at inter-European conflicts. Skeptics however, believe that the treaty diminishes the powers of our leaders in Whitehall, with many important decisions being made by MEPs and Euro regulators in Brussels, all of which was signed off and agreed to by the Labour party.
Promising a public vote on whether to accept or reject the treaty was one of the catalysts for David Cameron fever, who was able to adopt a liberal stance by supporting the need for public debate (left...check) while seen to be championing the preservation of national interests (right...check.) But many months and soundbites later, it seems that the referendum may no longer be an option. I suppose at this juncture, it would be fitting to talk about the Irish.
Ireland, in a tide of patriotism, rejected the Lisbon Treaty, which meant that they were flooded with lobbyists (well done for not joining), EU pressure (you better join or else,) and as if the God's themselves had a hand in their fate, they were held hostage by a flagging economy during the worlds economic torpor (you have no choice but to join), so it surprised me very little, to learn that in their referendum, they voted for the treaty, and with Poland and other dissenters about to follow suit and enter the warm and ever vigilant embrace of the Treaty, a referendum may no longer be an option in the UK as it would be seen as "stalling developments" because the treaty would have been ratified by the 27 member states, a majority rules principle, democracy, yay!
But while democracy may have won the battle, politics has won the war, for David Cameron, who may well be one of the smartest operatives since the SMERSH organisation, has managed to satisfy multiple political bases, both at home and abroad and will never have to act on his original manifesto. Politics well played Sir.
David 1
The Country 0
Promising a public vote on whether to accept or reject the treaty was one of the catalysts for David Cameron fever, who was able to adopt a liberal stance by supporting the need for public debate (left...check) while seen to be championing the preservation of national interests (right...check.) But many months and soundbites later, it seems that the referendum may no longer be an option. I suppose at this juncture, it would be fitting to talk about the Irish.
Ireland, in a tide of patriotism, rejected the Lisbon Treaty, which meant that they were flooded with lobbyists (well done for not joining), EU pressure (you better join or else,) and as if the God's themselves had a hand in their fate, they were held hostage by a flagging economy during the worlds economic torpor (you have no choice but to join), so it surprised me very little, to learn that in their referendum, they voted for the treaty, and with Poland and other dissenters about to follow suit and enter the warm and ever vigilant embrace of the Treaty, a referendum may no longer be an option in the UK as it would be seen as "stalling developments" because the treaty would have been ratified by the 27 member states, a majority rules principle, democracy, yay!
But while democracy may have won the battle, politics has won the war, for David Cameron, who may well be one of the smartest operatives since the SMERSH organisation, has managed to satisfy multiple political bases, both at home and abroad and will never have to act on his original manifesto. Politics well played Sir.
David 1
The Country 0
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