Private polling and focus groups indicate Lisbon 2 may be lost: Sunday Times

[hiding behind a poster]

my present frame of mind suggests that a successful NO vote will send out a clear message that there will be no changes until the damn treaty is rewritten or presented in a way where all citizens know precisely what it means. it seems very insincere for the government not to be informing us well in advance of the details

The Treaty is available for anyone who wants to read it in full. Why don't you just do that?

you know to give us time to think it through. instead we hear of promises made that guarantees are given which turn out to be FALSE PROMISES AGAIN...& again & again...

The guarantees are legally binding on the 27 countries, and take the form of an international treaty, registered with the United Nations. To suggest they are false promises is either ill-informed or deliberately disingenuous.

[Baron von Biffo]

I don't remember any gun being held to my head when I voted the first time round. I wasn't intimidated or pressurised in any way whatsoever. I just went into the polling booth and voted in secret. You can do that too, you know.

Good for you.

[Lloyd-Apjohn]

I don't remember any gun being held to my head when I voted the first time round. I wasn't intimidated or pressurised in any way whatsoever. I just went into the polling booth and voted in secret. You can do that too, you know.

Actually you don't because when you go to the polling booth your ballot paper has a reference which is matched to your address onthe register so they could check how you voted quite easily so the ballot is not actually secret.

[hiding behind a poster]

So as I'm saying, there's no gun to your head. You can vote whatever way you like.

[CookieMonster]

So as I'm saying, there's no gun to your head. You can vote whatever way you like.

As many times as you're made to...

[dalywise]

Its thanks to the EU Commission that we taxpayers will be paying inflated prices for land and property which may not appreciate for decades.

Bloody hell, what a stupid comment. Take a look at the various commentaries that the EU issued on the Irish economy since the incompetent McCreevy became Minister for Finance. They warned time and time again that we were making a complete bags of it and once actually had formally censored for our stupidity and the EU was roundly condemned for interfering with our miracle economy, they ddin't understand us, were jealous of our success etc. It's precisely because the EU did not have control over our fiscal policy that we are in this mess. BTW, how come all the other Euro member states have nothing like the problems that we have? Did those auld Brussels bureaucrats just pick on the Paddies yet again and decide to destroy the economy here in order to make it easier to bring in conscription, and then abortion and destroy our culture.

NAMA stinks - it's politcal croneyism of the ultimate sort - but the EU cannot politically say no and if they did, imagine the outcry about interference by "foreigners"

[McDave]

lisbon 2 eh? well it certainly has to be a NO. i mean can someone please explain why the big rush to change the present system for an one of ominous uncertainty? my present frame of mind suggests that a successful NO vote will send out a clear message that there will be no changes until the damn treaty is rewritten or presented in a way where all citizens know precisely what it means. it seems very insincere for the government not to be informing us well in advance of the details, you know to give us time to think it through. instead we hear of promises made that guarantees are given which turn out to be FALSE PROMISES AGAIN...& again & again...

First of all, there has been no rush to introduce institutional changes. The failed consititution (90%+ of Lisbon) and Lisbon itself have been in gestation for 5 years now. The consolidated version of Lisbon has been available since May last year - see the EU's Official Journal C115.

Lisbon is quite complicated. However, the White Paper (at The Lisbon Treaty 2009) chapters on the substance of Lisbon are, at 80 pages, quite readable. Also the actual consolidated text of the Treaty on European Union is, at 30 pages, manageable enough. The Treaty on the Functioning of the EU is a much more complicated affair, and very long (150 pages).

Still any citizen who habitually reads should be able to manage the White Paper and the TEU. You don't have to be a lawyer to get a good sense of what this is about. Then at least you can have an informed discussion. I'd go as far as to say that the fact that we are having a referendum of citizens obliges those citizens to inform themselves as best they can. If a large body of citizens does not want to inform itself, that debases the referendum process. In that event, one might as well hand over decision-making on these matters to Parliament.

As for time to think, this is the second time through on Lisbon. Any interested citizen has had as much time as needed to get reasonably informed.

[TommyO'Brien]

Actually you don't because when you go to the polling booth your ballot paper has a reference which is matched to your address onthe register so they could check how you voted quite easily so the ballot is not actually secret.

Incorrect. That was struck down by the Supreme Court 40 years ago as unconstitutional. There is no way whatsoever for matching ballots to addresses. None.

[CookieMonster]

Incorrect. That was struck down by the Supreme Court 40 years ago as unconstitutional. There is no way whatsoever for matching ballots to addresses. None.

Quite so. This isn't South Africa.

[peader odonnell]

Actually you don't because when you go to the polling booth your ballot paper has a reference which is matched to your address onthe register so they could check how you voted quite easily so the ballot is not actually secret.

can anyone else verify that ones ballot paper is traceable ?,i know it was at one time but i thought things had changed.