Does Ireland really want to keep towing the Euro line?

Despite the best efforts of the Irish government and their European masters to prevent a referendum on the new European fiscal treaty, a vote may yet still happen. The Attorney General and possibly the courts may give the people a choice in their future where the politicians have denied them. There remains an interesting question however; could this be passed if the people are given a choice?

Aside from the glaringly undemocratic nature of this treaty coming into effect without a plebiscite, the major irritant in this instance is the assumption on the part of politicians and bureaucrats that they know what is better for the Irish people than the people themselves. The implications for Ireland if this Fiscal Compact is rejected are very significant.
The stated purpose of the proposal is to prevent economic crisis in the future. In reality, it will mean many more years of austerity for the people of Ireland. This is as a result of Ireland’s current economic position. The nation has been so badly damaged by the economic crisis that took hold in 2008 that it finds itself near the bottom of the European pile from an economic point of view. In this weakened state, Ireland’s economic future is inextricably linked with Europe for the foreseeable future.
Most people who would have the right to vote in a potential referendum run households on a day-to-day basis. They are economically aware and, unfortunately, more than cognisant of the difficulties of dealing with debt, and the servicing of same, while keeping their heads above water. It is the people, rather than the politicians, who are more than aware of the actual daily consequences of the economic crisis. With this in mind, the case for letting the people decide their future with regard to Europe is strengthened considerably.
Although the position of Irish and European politicians regarding an Irish referendum is an affront, it is easy to see why they fear a vote. Ireland has a record of rejecting European treaties and the rejection of their decisions and repeated votes until the “right” answer came to pass has left people suspicious.
The fact that Europe is now seen as the group leader in the economic punishment of Ireland for the folly of the few, leaves the union in a unique position of distrust and unpopularity with the people of Ireland. Politicians, being the kind of animals they are, feel the Irish people will use the opportunity of a vote to punish them for the terrible economic
persecution they are enduring. I am not sure this is the case.
If a vote does take place a number of things will need to change from the way they were in the past. The disparaging attitude of Fianna Fáil governments to the opinion of the electorate with regard to European votes will have to be left behind. If a vote is held then the facts of the treaty will have to be explained plainly and the results and implications of ratification will have to be outlined clearly and honestly. Armed with all the facts, the Irish people can then make a mature decision on their future and, more importantly, their children’s.
Certainly it should be acknowledged that there are certain people among the electorate who will use the opportunity to punish the government if a vote is held. In the main however I believe that the people of Ireland are not so foolish.
If they reject the treaty they will do so because they do not feel it is best for them, their children and their future well being or, they will reject it because it has not been properly explained to them. This second point is the one we have bad associations with from past referenda.
The attitude of Fianna Fáil governments on European votes has been obscene when viewed with hindsight. There was a disdain in the government campaigns of the past. Despite the efforts of the Electoral Commission to educate the public fully on what they were voting for or against, it was the attitude of the politicians that is now the defining memory of the campaigns. Just vote yes and don’t cause us any problems, you wouldn’t understand it if we explained it to you all day; is a fairly neat summation of the attitude we saw from the governments of the past and indeed from the opposition of the time in most cases.
This attitude has left the Irish electorate with a massive hangover and a very sour taste in their mouths. This will not have been helped by Enda Kenny’s recent comments in Davos.
At the shrine to international capitalism, the Taoiseach offered the Irish people as his blood sacrifice to the money gods. He told those assembled that “people went mad with borrowing”.
In this he intimated that the current crisis was the fault of the Irish people. Most people will be more than aware that this is a flawed statement. Certainly Irish people did borrow the cheap money being shoved down their throats by lending institutions but light regulation and an essentially free ride for the financial sector played a massive part.
Decisions such as guaranteeing returns for unsecured bondholders must also be remembered as a source of misery for the nation. I have mentioned on many occasions bank advertisements aimed at students in the boom years which encouraged them to lie in order to secure loans to spend on holidays and drum kits. The Taoiseach is attempting to rewrite history and casting the people as the villains when the blame lies very much elsewhere.
Perhaps it is a backlash against this constant abuse and vilification that the politicians fear; the retribution of a public scarred and punished for the idiocy of others. In denying the Irish people a vote, these cowards add yet another insult to the growing stack of affronts.
The Irish electorate will not be so stupid as to sacrifice their futures simply to deliver a slap on the wrist to national and European politicians. If they get a vote and reject the treaty they will do so because they believe it will better serve their future interests, something politicians have been failing to do for what feels like a very long time.