Eurosceptics warn EU not to ignore Irish treaty rejection

EU leaders will be guilty of showing ‘contempt for democracy’ if they attempt to carry on with ratification of the Lisbon treaty, MEP Nigel Farage has warned.

Following the Irish referendum ‘no’ on Friday, Farage, the UKIP leader in the European parliament demanded that any further ratification of the treaty be immediately stopped.

“The Irish result today shows that the Lisbon treaty does not command public support. The only people to have a say on the treaty have kicked it into the long grass," said Farage.

Celebrating the result outside an Irish pub next to the European commission’s headquarters in Brussels, Farage told theparliament.com that “voters in Ireland clearly don’t want deeper European integration but I suspect they will be ignored, as Dutch and French voters were on the constitution.”

“This is becoming a bit of a habit in Europe, the EU asks the people, and they say no.”

"But I suspect that the EU extremists will simply try to ignore it. The EU doesn’t understand what no is.  They hold democracy in contempt.

The eurosceptic MEP called for next week’s UK vote on the treaty by the House of Lords to stopped immediately

"The third reading of the treaty in the House of Lords must be halted because the project now has no legitimacy."

And Farage hinted that a number of parliament’s eurosceptic MEPs would be taking direct action during parliament’s plenary session in Strasbourg to highlight the issue.

“If the EU doesn’t want to play by its rules, then the rules of the game have changed.  There will be very visible signs next week in Strasbourg.”

Meanwhile GUE/NGL leader in the parliament, Francis Wurtz welcomed the result as the “jolt” that Europe needed.

“I welcome with enthusiasm the result of the Irish referendum because, without this kind of jolt, there is no chance that the debate can open up about what must change in the orientations and structures of the current EU.”

But he warned that “Liberal Europe's "yes men" are once again going to be able to pour a torrent of insults on a nation of people who dared not toe the line: "selfishness"; "ingratitude"; "ignorance" ... these will be some of the terms used to try to hide from European citizens the real nature of the message of 12 June 2008.”

“As Bertold Brecht said ironically 'if leaders are right and the people are wrong, then change the people' when speaking about these deaf "elites" and the demands of their society because they upset their interests and their certainties.”

Former Danish eurosceptic MEP  Jens-Peter Bonde said the Lisbon treaty needed to follow the shelving of the “much rejected EU-constitution.”

“The Irish referendum was a convincing no from all areas in Ireland, except from the prime minister’s own constituency and a couple of upper class constituencies of the green island.”

“Why not elect a convention to establish draft rules with more transparency, closeness and democracy and then send the proposal for referendums in all EU member states at the same day?”

“Why not have the referendums together with the European elections in June 2009.”

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