Following the Yes vote on the Lisbon treaty in Ireland the media is full with articles and reports about the EU, the Lisbon treaty and the Irish vote. Unfortunately, journalistic accuracy for EU related topic is not that widespread. At least I get the impression after reading and watching a fair amount of material in [...]
Posts Tagged ‘referendum’
Ireland voted YES: But what’s next?
Finally, a YES for the Lisbon Treaty in Ireland. At least the second attempt was successful. So , what’s next? Now it is up to the Polish and Czech presidents to sign the treaty as well. Lech Kaczinski, the Polish president, promised to sign the text after the Irish voted ”yes’. So this leaves an [...]
The Improved Spoofer’s Guide to the Lisbon Treaty
The Irish referendum is on the horizon. So it is time to explain the Lisbon Treaty (again!). Here it is: The second edition (“Lisbon ‘09 – The Rematch version”) of the most entertaining Lisbon treaty paper ever published and of course it is bigger, better, faster and with Omega 3: So, enjoy Jason O’Mahony’s New [...]
Libertas: The one-man show comes to Europe
So, just in time for next years European Parliament elections Declan Ganley launched his Libertas party, or “pan-European movement” as he would label it. However, so far the ‘party’ neither has programme nor candidates which I think is major shortcoming when launching a party. You would at least expect some basic policy goals in order [...]
Ireland: Post Referendum Research Findings
The long awaited report on the underlying causes of the No vote on the Lisbon Treaty in Ireland has been published. You can read the complete report here: “Post Lisbon Treaty Referendum Research Findings (.pdf)”
Here some key findings:
The main reason for abstaining in this referendum was lack of understanding/knowledge (46%), which is far in excess [...]
Kosmolinks #17
The referendum: populism vs democracy
The idea of the referendum as an instrument of the people’s will rests on pre-democratic foundations, says George Schöpflin. I certainly agree!
A better way with referendums
Interesting idea: Is it possible to introduce a more deliberative approach when holding a referendum? Does “deliberative polling” make citizens more knowledgeable?
Instead of [...]
Cameron vs. Brown
Interesting how Gordon Brown defends the EU and the Lisbon Treaty: Conviction or tactics?
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1uVFkzzLkL0]
Kosmolinks #16
The Irish ‘no’ and the EU’s “nuclear”option
Daniel Gros (CEPS) argues for “a radical solution – the other EU members should propose to leave the old EU and create a new one with the Lisbon Treaty as its founding document.”
So much for bringing Europe closer to the people
Everyone is right and wrong at the [...]
The Irish ‘No’ – Problems and Dilemmas
The problems with the Irish referendum:
In any representative democracy a document with 271 pages (479 pages in the consolidated version!) of legal text should never be put to a referendum.
The method of EU treaty ratification should be the same in every member state.
A very weak YES campaign and a quite strong NO campaign.
The NO campaign [...]
Kosmolinks #15
Public perceptions of the EU as a system of governance
Good overview on the state of research…
Is Europe doing any good in Chad? | Certain ideas of Europe
Apparently there is not much to do in Chad. Sudan is far away, the local dictator feels more secure, and anyway, the EU mission has the wrong equipment [...]
