TAOISEACH'S COMMENTS:THE GOVERNMENT will consider the appropriate timing for the European Stability Treaty referendum next week, the Taoiseach said in Brussels yesterday.
Mr Kenny told reporters at the EU Summit that incidents such as the leaking of a European Commission document on Ireland to the German Bundestag were “unhelpful” but could be “overplayed”.
He implicitly rebuked Minister for Social Protection Joan Burton, who had suggested that the EU should cut the cost of the bank bailout programme to facilitate the passage of the treaty in the referendum.
Speaking on his way into a lunch with other leaders of the European People’s Party, Mr Kenny said he looked forward to briefing his colleagues on the Irish decision to hold a referendum, on foot of advice from the Attorney General.
“I think it is very important that, in this particular referendum, the Irish people will have a real opportunity to cement the relationship with Europe both for the future of Ireland and the future of jobs and growth which have been central to that agenda.”
Mr Kenny was asked if he agreed with the views of his cabinet colleague Ms Burton, reported in yesterday’s Financial Times, that Ireland should seek concessions on promissory notes for the former Anglo Irish bank in order to facilitate a successful referendum.
“The promissory notes issue is an entirely separate matter from this treaty. The work that the troika undertook to initiate is still ongoing.
“These are entirely separate matters, in other words, the Irish people are not going to be bribed by anybody.
“That work is entirely separate from the treaty, and in due course the Government will set out a process by which this will be set before the people.”
When asked if the referendum would be held “sooner rather than later”, the Taoiseach replied: “We didn’t actually decide a time. The Government will reflect on this next week. As you are aware, we have to set up a referendum commission, appoint a chairman, produce a referendum Bill, publish the fiscal responsibility Bill – which is quite complex – and decide on what is the appropriate process in time.
“I really want to have a very open, thorough and comprehensive discussion with the people about this, so that everybody understands just how important their decision is in regard to Ireland’s future and our people’s future, because that is what it is about.”
He was further asked if he would be raising with German chancellor Angela Merkel the matter of the European Commission document on Ireland that was leaked to the Bundestag. “I understand that this is a document that came from the Commission.
“Minister Noonan has written to Commissioner Rehn about it and obviously the commissioner will respond to the Minister for Finance directly,” he said.
When it was put to him that this was a damaging development at the start of a referendum campaign, Mr Kenny said: “People read all kinds of things into the documents that go from the Commission or from the Irish Government to the treasury [sic] and on to the Bundestag committee. But obviously Minister Noonan is writing to Commissioner Rehn about it. These things are unhelpful but sometimes they’re overplayed.”
