Ireland remains unclear on EU treaty poll date
By Honor Mahony
The date for Ireland's referendum on the EU treaty remains unclear but is likely to be set within the next weeks, the country's Europe minister has said.
Speaking in Brussels on Monday (28 January), Dick Roche said that the draft legislation on holding a referendum was "almost complete" and is expected to pass through cabinet within the next ten days.
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After the law has been approved, a referendum must be held between 30 and 90 days later.
A referendum commission - providing information on the treaty - will be established once the referendum legislation is published. Its budget is expected to be about €5-6 million, said Mr Roche.
"It will be a few weeks before we know the date," he added.
The problem for the government - which is under great pressure from its European partners to secure a Yes in the referendum - is that Prime Minister Bertie Ahern is embroiled in a series of enquiries into payments made to him in the 1990s.
He has already appeared before a tribunal on the matter, and polls published over the weekend show his popularity ratings are down. A majority, 54%, said they do not believe Mr Ahern's evidence to the tribunal.
Although the government has previously indicated that the public vote will be held in the first half of this year - probably just before the summer - it may hold off until autumn.
Asked about whether he feared Irish voters may vote on the Ahern issue rather than the issue at hand, Mr Roche said:
"Of course, in every referendum, the issue becomes clouded. I am sure if the French went to the polls tomorrow, the issue would be more about Carla Bruni than any referendum."
"But Irish voters should focus on what the treaty is all about and that's what we will be concentrating on," he added.
In the meantime, EU politicians will be making their way over to the island to speak about the treaty.
German Chancellor Angela Merkel has been invited, said Mr Roche, as has the head of the European Parliament, Hans-Gert Poettering.
For his part, Mr Poettering said he would be asking the "Irish people to support this treaty."
The treaty has to be ratified by all 27 member states before it can come into force. Only Ireland is holding a referendum, which is expected to make the country a battleground for pro- and anti-EU camps from across the bloc.
A poll conducted by the Sunday Business Post over the weekend showed that 45% are in favour of the treaty, 25% against while 30% remain undecided.