Country can’t afford a No vote, says McNamara

THIS week’s announcement that a referendum on the EU fiscal compact treaty is required presents the Irish political establishment with a major challenge.
With more Euro-scepticism in the country now than when the Lisbon Treaty was rejected in 2008, the leading parties, all of whom are advocating a Yes vote, have a lot of work to do.
On Wednesday, Deputy Michael McNamara told The Clare Champion he believes passing the treaty is very important. “In my view a rejection of this treaty would result in instability and in my view the country can’t afford instability at this point in time.”
A No vote would have a negative investment on the perception of Ireland in other countries, he added. “I believe that the investments that have been announced and the investments that the Chinese delegation signalled they were interested in making, are because the Government have stabilised the situation and they would be jeopardised by instability.”
He claimed a rejection would stop Ireland from accessing funds from the European Stability Mechanism in the future, which could be damaging.
Fine Gael’s Pat Breen said having a referendum is the right move. “I welcome the decision to hold a referendum, which will afford the people an opportunity to have their say and to cement growing international confidence in Ireland by supporting this treaty. This treaty is an important part of the package needed to stabilise the economic situation in Europe  because it provides assurance that the kinds of problems that have emerged in Greece cannot happen again.”
He said he hopes the referendum doesn’t turn into a vote on the Government. “My big worry is that sometimes referendums are used as a measure of how the Government is performing and there needs to be proper debate and no scaremongering.”
Mr Breen also said the treaty would prevent future governments from mismanaging the public finances. “In the coming weeks, the Government will finalise the arrangements for this referendum and the Irish people will then have the opportunity to ensure that more binding and enforceable fiscal rules are introduced, which will be good for both Ireland and the wider Eurozone. The ratification of this treaty will also ensure the reckless economic mismanagement pursued by the previous government that drove our country to the brink of bankruptcy will not be repeated by a future government.”
Although Fianna Fáil is not in Government, the party will still be campaigning strongly, Deputy Timmy Dooley said. “We will be campaigning progressively and will support the referendum. It’s not a final step but an important move to resolve the crisis.”
While previous European treaties were criticised for being unreadable, Deputy Dooley said the current one is much more user-friendly. “I think it’s fairly straightforward. It’s not as long and I don’t think it’d be beyond anyone to read it carefully and to understand it. People will try to misinterpret it but we have faith in the public and it is quite readable and it’s there to deal with the crisis that has arisen.”
Deputy Dooley made his comments before Éamon Ó Cuív resigned as Fianna Fáil deputy leader on Wednesday.