Below are some of the videos posted to Youtube from countries across Europe thanking the Irish people for voting no to the Lisbon Treaty:

Netherland:

Great Britain:

Germany:

Poland:

Greece:

A must read article from The Telegraph.

Among others you’ll read:

Mr Valéry Giscard d’Estaing told the Irish Times that Ireland’s referendum rejection would not kill the Treaty, despite a legal requirement of unanimity from all the EU’s 27 member states.

“We are evolving towards majority voting because if we stay with unanimity, we will do nothing,” he said.

“It is impossible to function by unanimity with 27 members. This time it’s Ireland; the next time it will be somebody else.”

“Ireland is one per cent of the EU”.

Mr Giscard d’Estaing also admitted that, unlike his original Constitutional Treaty, the Lisbon EU Treaty had been carefully crafted to confuse the public.

“What was done in the [Lisbon] Treaty, and deliberately, was to mix everything up. If you look for the passages on institutions, they’re in different places, on different pages,” he said.

“Someone who wanted to understand how the thing worked could with the Constitutional Treaty, but not with this one.”

France and Germany are putting pressure on Ireland to hold a second referendum which would allow the Lisbon Treaty to come into force before European elections on June 4 2009.

Mr Giscard d’Estaing believes “there is no alternative” to a second Irish vote, a view shared by Nicolas Sarkozy, the French President.

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…and there are nine million bicycles in Beijing.

While at the same time interesting news is coming from Austria:

The Austrian Socialist Party declared yesterday, that they demand a referendum on the renamed EU Constitution (Lisbon Treaty) in case there will be something changed in this Treaty! Apart from that they demand a referendum on the EU membership of Turkey.

This change is absolutely incredible and is the result of the new polls (Eurobarometer) that state that only 28% of the Austrians have a positive opinion about EU.

Now the Greens ant the ÖVP (Christian Party, in coalition with SPÖ) are really shocked and it is possible, that there will be new elections soon.

Best regards,

Gabriele Wladyka

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And best of regards to you, Gabriele!

Article from Jutarnji list:

Amongst the 1000 asked citizens of Croatia only 30% of them share the opinion that the membership in EU is “a good thing”, while 39% are “neutral” or think that “the membership is neither good or bad”.

Quite to the contrary Macedonians (FYROM) would gladly accept EU - 72% are in favour.

Croatia is one year away from technical closing of membership negotiations. Most pressure has been around ZERP (Law on Ecological and Fishing Belt) and around shipbuilding scandals. Also extremely mild attitude from EU against Serbia and its Hague tourists has been detrimental for the Croatian optimism.

In EU member states as Ireland, Denmark, Poland, Slovenia and Netherlands there are between 70% to 80% of those who see much larger benefits than negative aspects.

In lands like Hungary and Austria around half of the people sees EU as “more damage than benefits”.

In Croatia again only 44% believe that possible membership in EU will bring benefits, while 50% of Turks thinks the same for Turkey and in Macedonia(FYROM) 80% of those asked.

Spain has had an intense Thursday. Firstly their MP’s defeated Democracy by 322 in favor and 6 against (plus 2 abstained) over the question of renamed EU Constitution.

Afterwards in the evening “Furia” defeated “Zbornaya Komanda” by 3 against 0.

Second victory was definitely more dignified.

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From Austria there is more news on a chance for a referendum - leading SPÖ party will demand a referendum over the renamed EU Constitution if in future any changes will be made to the existing treaty. That has been announced by the Austrian MEP Hannes Swoboda.

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source: SiOL.net

We thank EU Referendum blog for pointing the linked video-story from RTL out. In today’s overload of information one can hardly keep track with things in EU that really suck:

Expense Allowance Abuse by MEPs

article in The Telegraph

Stuart Wheeler, the spread-betting multi-millionaire, has lost his legal challenge to Gordon Brown’s decision to ratify the Lisbon Treaty.

He said: “I have high hopes of winning on appeal. We shall apply to the Court of Appeal for permission to appeal and we will see what they say.”

Ruth Lea, Director of the Global Vision think-tank, said: “Today’s ruling by the High Court is extremely dispiriting especially as many European politicians have made it quite clear that the Lisbon Treaty is the Constitutional Treaty in all but name.

“Under these circumstances, the British people are surely entitled to their referendum on the Treaty as the Irish people did. All our polling shows an overwhelming majority in favour of a referendum.”

Independent.ie

By Address with Editor

Tuesday June 24 2008

IRELAND, using what the whole of Ireland thought was a democratic system, has said a clear ‘NO’ to the Lisbon Treaty. Others might disagree as to the outcome of the vote Ireland had, but still that vote took place with voters thinking that their wishes would be respected. It looks like the voters, as far as you’re concerned Mr Cowen, were wrong.

You have decided to say the equivalent of “stuff ye all” and do what EU bullies are telling you to do. You are second-grading the voices of the population that has placed you in the position of power you hold. It appears you have decided to force the Irish people to vote again because you didn’t like the result the first time!

If you cannot represent the thoughts and wishes of the people on this island called Ireland Mr Cowen, then it’s time for you to go. You are supposed to be working for the people of Ireland, not the thugs and bullies of the EU, particularly French President Sarkozy and Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso.

Using a supposed democratic legal system, the Irish people were given a choice. Now, because your real masters are not happy with our decision you have, it appears, decided to totally ignore the voters, bide your time and try in a while to shove another vote on the Irish people again.

This is no longer about who is right and wrong in a ‘YES or ‘NO’ vote. This is about representing the people that voted in what they thought was a democratic vote. You will be a disgrace to the system of democracy with a forced re-vote. This is about having the courage to stand up to the thug bullies of Europe and say “No, you cannot push us around!”

They all agreed and signed up to a legally binding democratic system. Now that it hasn’t gone their way, they want to force the little voters of Ireland into giving them their way. Every child in Europe’s playgrounds knows that’s called bullying! Are you Mr Cowen, turning a blind eye to their attempts at pushing the people of this island around? Are you going to stand up and actually do something about it?

Mr Cowen, if you and Fianna Fail decide to force a second vote on us, here is a message from the people of Ireland… Do the decent thing — quit.

Address with Editor

The fog over the Irish referendum field has not even cleared as the new loads of Democracy are going to be distributed over the continent.

Media-gag originating from the big PR earner Media Consulta has for the fifth time in a row unleashed a large yellow truck that will explain to the average EU-topian what is living in EU all about: For Diversity. Against Discrimination.

Probably it would do much good when EU would start listening to its own PR slogans and would start ReSpECTing those discriminated by itself. Euro-critical voices in the first rows.

And if you don’t have anything sensible to do this summer you can also catch and follow the second caravan of EU-PR. It’s called Come to Europe.

Come to Mama, you naughty boys:

A roadshow that travels throughout Kosovo, giving an opportunity for all to see what the EU teams in Kosovo and Kosovo’s European integration are about. Kosovo’s most special truck was unveiled on 13 May 2008 and will tour Kosovo until the end of June. As it transforms into a performance stage, it reveals 2- 4 hour shows including the European quiz qualifications, a theatre comedy, local talent shows, as well as star acts and VIPs. Twenty locations across Kosovo are being visited by ‘Come to Europe’ truck. All the family is invited to enjoy the entertainment and learn more about the EU!

The aim of this EU tour is to explain, in Kosovo’s new era, how the EU is specifically helping Kosovo go on its reform track: economically, socially, politically, and culturally.

As the roadshow travels throughout Kosovo - make sure to join and enjoy the most fun European event ever. Download the calendar, check photos, and apply for the quiz at www.cometoeuropeks.eu

Mission:
The European Union is touring Kosovo.

EU leaders don’t take Irish ‘No’ for an answer

Respect the Irish Vote: Aftershock in European Parliament

R (Wheeler)

v

Office of the Prime Minister and
Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs

DIRECTION

I refer to the undated letter emailed by the Treasury Solicitors to my clerk yesterday afternoon, indicating that the Government “is now proceeding to ratify the Treaty of Lisbon”.

The court is very surprised that the Government apparently proposes to ratify while the claimant’s challenge to the decision not to hold a referendum on ratification is before the court. The court expects judgment to be handed down next week. The defendants are invited to stay their hand voluntarily until judgment.

If, in the absence of any satisfactory assurance to that effect, the claimant decides to seek injunctive relief, I direct that the application be placed before me personally. I will make myself available today (save for this evening) and over the weekend should it be necessary, even though the hearing of any application may delay completion of the judgment: relevant contact details can be obtained from my clerk. I hope that it will not be necessary.

Copies of this direction should be sent to the parties and to the Administrative Court Office.

Lord Justice Richards
20 June 2008

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And Mr. Stuart Wheeler predicts for the coming week:

Judgment in my case is likely to be given next week. As soon as it is given the result will be posted here.

Royal Assent to the bill does not constitute ratification. A further step is required i.e. the deposit of the ‘instruments of ratification’ with the Italian government. It would be quite wrong for our government to do that before my case, and any appeal have been decided.*

One more point: solicitors for the Prime Minister refused, on technical legal grounds, to produce documents which would, I feel sure, show that the only reason he is refusing a referendum is that he believes that he would lose it.*

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Brown offers EU treaty assurances
EU treaty: Judge tells Gordon Brown to delay ratification

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Small print at the end: Slovenia’s Constitutional Court has been pondering over the issue of holding a referendum since March - seems no one is in a particular hurry during the Slovenian presidency. Germany and Czech in similar legal position.

Interview with President Klaus for Lidové Noviny, Prague

Sunday, 15th of June, 2008

What do you think about the Irish No?

The whole of Europe should thank the Irish people for slowing down current erroneous processes towards more unification, the suppression of nation states, towards a ‘Europe of regions’, and towards greater centralization from above of which the Lisbon Treaty was the embodiment. Thanks to the Irish referendum this was a perfect example of what the common people think about this development - contrary to the politicians supporting the EU who are motivated entirely differently. I thanked a few Irish people personally.

What does the Irish NO mean for the fate of the Lisbon Treaty in your view? What will be its impact for the entire EU?

I cannot imagine any other development besides recognizing the fact that this is not the way to go. Let’s seek a different European model than a supranational state with its seat in Brussels. Let’s come back to the community of friendly, effectively cooperating states. Let’s keep most of the competencies on the level of states. We should let people living on the European continent be Czechs, Poles, Italians, Danes and not make Europeans of them. That is a wrong project. The difference between a Czech, a Pole, an Italian and a Dane (as random examples) and a European is like the difference between Czech, Polish, Danish and esperanto. “Europeanness” is esperanto; an artificial, dead language.

What follows from the Irish No for the Czech Republic? Should we continue in preparing the ratification under these circumstances, or is it not necessary? E.g. the British declared that they are going to continue in the ratification, despite the results in Ireland…

The ratification cannot be continued, the Treaty can no longer come into force. To continue as though nothing has happened, would be a pure hypocrisy. This would be worse news about the “state of the Union” than the Irish NO. The ratification of the Lisbon Treaty in the Czech Republic ended last Friday. To pretend something else is undignified - at least if we are in a world where one plus one equals two. I think that the British didn’t declare anything. It was the Labour Prime Minister Gordon Brown who declared something. The British democracy is much more complex.

Does the Irish NO change your attitude towards the option of having a referendum on the Lisbon Treaty in the Czech Republic? And if so, how?

The referendum on the Lisbon Treaty in our country is not necessary today; there is nothing to vote on. The only possible question would be: “Do you, the Czechs, want the Irish to vote again and differently?”. It is not about us today.

Should the European Union attempt to create an entirely new document after the Irish NO, instead of dusting the Treaty off or revising it?

Any document is only the last step. We need a new perception of the European integration process. It is necessary to explicitly repudiate the post-Maastricht development towards an ever closer union. The resulting document is then only a composition exercise, but it must be written on a different basis and by different people. It cannot be written by a German politician who thinks in federalist terms and has been in the European Parliament for the past 30 years. It can neither be written by a Frenchman for whom “Europeanisation” is a way to increase the greatness and importance of France. It can neither be a representative of a country which wants to solve some of its historical traumas “via Europe”. It requires an unemotional consideration about the right administration of “public goods” - which of them belong at the level of towns, regions and states and which at the level of the continent. And above all, which of them do not belong anywhere, because the issue is not about public goods but about “private goods” which must remain subject to the decision-making of free individuals.

What will be the impact of the Irish decision on the Czech EU Presidency in 2009?

We will have a little more competences than we would, was the Lisbon Treaty valid. The Treaty substantially weakened the states and therefore also the presidency of any one of them. But let us not live in illusions. I know well, that the entire concept of a rotating presidency is to a certain extent just a game pretending to represent a real democracy.

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Did the EU just launch a new Radio Erevan?

The Director of the Political Department in the Office of the President, Mr Jakl, was interviewed on Czech TV yesterday, and asked: “How come that President Klaus can have such an opinion that the ratification cannot continue?” His response was: “Madam presenter, that is not an opinion, that is a fact.”

European political elite is trying to overtake the legitimate results from Ireland. Observers of political life can see “young and restless” politicians like the Finnish Foreign Minister Mr. Stubb who have to exercise the same repetitious subliminal messages in line with “Lisbon is not dead”and similar.

“The treaty is not dead. The EU is in constant crisis management - we go from one crisis to another and finally we find a solution,” Finnish Foreign Minister Alexander Stubb told reporters, noting the bloc had dealt with past voter setbacks.

However Europeans defending democracy already respond to such attempts or provocations. In Facebook there are notable shifts to the groups like “Respect the Irish NO: stop ratification of the Lisbon Treaty” with already over 1.200 members.

In such Facebook groups one can find many useful hints on what to do and where to click - for example if you are British citizen your most efficient action for beginning would be to sign the petition…

“We the undersigned petition the Prime Minister to Respect the result of the Irish referendum and abandon the attempt to ratify the Lisbon Treaty.”

Europe in action!

…and Margot in turmoil:

Also do check other related videos e.g. “Reaction”.

Statement from TEAM, The European Alliance of EU-critical Movements

14.06.2008

The result of the Irish referendum on the Lisbon Treaty is a triumph for democracy. The Irish voters have rejected a treaty that is undemocratic and militaristic. They have thereby rendered all Europeans an enormous service, opening new possibilities for a cooperation among the European peoples that is democratic, equal and peaceful and respects the sovereignty of each member state.

TEAM, The European Alliance of EU-critical Movements, a cross-political network of more than 50 organisations from over 20 countries, notes that the Lisbon Treaty has fallen and that the ratification process in other EU-member states should be called off immediately.

The German chancellor and the French president claim in their first reaction to the result of the Irish referendum that the Lisbon Treaty is necessary “in order to make the European Union more democratic and efficient”. In other words - in order to make the EU more democratic it is necessary to ignore the result of a truly democratic referendum. This statement reveals the degree of hypocricy in the EU-elite!

The EU-constitutional project has thrice failed to pass its democratic test: in France and The Netherlands in 2005 and, in a slightly made-up version, in Ireland in 2008. The EU-elite should realize by now that the peoples of Europe want a different form of community, based on other values. Its unwillingness to do so, however, makes it the more important that all committed citizens and organisations initiate discussions, create visions and forward-looking proposals pointing out the many possibilities for a truly democratic and peaceful European cooperation.

TEAM shall gladly contribute to this process, and expresses its warmest gratitude to the Irish people for giving all Europeans the possibility of doing so.

Thank you Ireland!
Congratulations Europe!

TEAM is a cross-political network of more than 50 organisations from over 20 countries in and outside the EU.

For further information please contact: coordinator Jesper Morville, jespermorville@mail.dk, or secretaries Blaž Babič, blaz.babic@amis.net or Argo Loo, looargo@yahoo.com.

Here are links to LIVE RESULTS:

1. RTE on renamed EU constitution, a.k.a. The Lisbon Treaty that wasn’t…
2. The Irish Times on the same piece of treason…

ADDITIONS:
No side leading across Ireland
Irish voters set to reject Lisbon Treaty

Dublin

Friday morning, 13 June 2008 - 10.40 a.m. Irish time

It now looks as if the NOs may be heading for a referendum win in Ireland!
This is based on estimates of the early “tallies”,which are rough impressions of the size of Yes and No votes, but before the count proper begins.
This is great news and looks like being a victory for democracy in Ireland and for Europe.
The counting proper is only now beginning and the final result should be available this afternoon.

All good wishes,

Anthony Coughlan
The National Platform EU Research and Information Centre
24 Crawford Avenue
Dublin 9

Tel.: 01-8305792 ;

FEW MEDIA INDICATORS:
Early Lisbon tallies lean toward No vote
‘No’ camp appears to have edge in Lisbon count
No vote gaining ground in Galway
No camp has edge in Lisbon count
‘Strong show’ for Irish No vote
Ireland Rejects Euro Treaty
Dublin Set to Reject EU Treaty-Senior Politician
French PM Says ´No Lisbon Treaty´ if Irish Vote No
Europe holds its breath for result of Ireland’s vote

The National Platform EU Research and Information Centre
24 Crawford Avenue
Dublin 9

Tel.: 01-8305792 ;
Web-site: nationalplatform.org

                 Media statement

Thursday 12 June 2008

                            TODAY'S LISBON TREATY VOTE

Whether people vote Yes or No to the Lisbon Treaty today, Ireland’s national interest and the best interests of future generations here and across Europe undoubtedly call for a No vote, for the reasons set out in the article below.

The Lisbon Treaty would endow the legally new European Union which it would establish with a revamped version of the EU Constitution that was rejected by the French and Dutch peoples in 2005.

This post-Lisbon EU would, inter alia, have the constitutional form of a supranational EU Federation, in which Ireland would be reduced to the status of a provincial state from being a sovereign one hitherto. Irish citizens in turn would be constitutionally transformed into real rather than symbolical citizens of a Federal European Union, rather as American citizens are citizens also of their local American states, or Federal Germany’s citizens are citizens of Germany’s Länder. Regrettably, this constitutional revolution which Lisbon would bring about in the EU itself, its Member States and in the civic status of four million Irish and nearly 500 million Europeans has scarcely been referred to in Ireland’s referendum debate.

The main reason for this is the failure of the statutory Referendum Commission to carry out its function of explaining the “subject matter of the proposal” in the Constitutional Amendment, “and its text”, which is what people have been voting on today.

from the Irish People’s Movement press release:

Reacting to the news that the Referendum Commission has been receiving its legal advice from a law firm that provides services to an industry lobby group which is campaigning for a YES vote, while the public information campaign is being run by consultants who were appointed by a tender offered by the Department of Foreign Affairs, Patricia McKenna former Green Party MEP and chairperson of the People’s Movement said:

“I am deeply shocked and disturbed to hear where the Referendum Commission’s legal advice and marketing of this important voter information is originating from. As someone who called for the early establishment of the Referendum Commission to provide independent information to voters, and as someone who was instrumental in its original establishment because of a court action I took to safeguard democracy during referendums some years ago, this is very disturbing. This evening there are serious questions hanging over the credibility, role and so-called ‘independence’ of the Referendum Commission to date.”

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Our comment: Referendum Commission has been established and tested just before Nice I. referendum. Since this referendum resulted in a NO, political rulers changed and diminished it’s role which resulted in a YES at Nice II. referendum. Apparently political elites are quite capable to destroy or by-pass good, affirmative and democratic attempts.

ADDITION: An attempt to motivate Irish to vote looked like this: Youtube with Keith Barry.

by Bruno Waterfield in Brussels, for Telegraph

Officials in Brussels are working on plans to ensure that the European Treaty is still implemented elsewhere if Ireland votes against it in the referendum.

Although measures such as creating an EU president, “foreign minister” and European diplomatic service may be delayed, they are still expected to be introduced.

One diplomat said a “bridging mechanism” was being discussed. If Ireland rejects the treaty, it may simply be removed from the list of signatories and will not be legally obliged to abide by it.

By late 2009 or early 2010, when Croatia joins the EU, an amending “Accession Treaty” will be signed by all members including Dublin.

It just had to happen. Finnish, Estonian and Greek parliaments have today proved for the last time before the Irish spectacle that current European national political elites have flown far, far away from their electorates.

Shame on them, shame on us for having such representatives.

A large majority of Finnish deputies – 151 out of 200 – on Wednesday (11 June) voted in favour of the document, while 27 opposed it and 21 were absent, according to AFP news agency.

A little later on Wednesday afternoon, the Estonian parliament also approved the Lisbon treaty. Its vote was almost unanimous: 91 votes in favour and one against. Nine MPs abstained.

The Greek parliament ratified the Lisbon treaty with 250 to 42 votes late on Wednesday, just hours before Irish citizens vote on the document. With Greece, 2/3 of EU states have started or completed the treaty’s ratification.

More on that in EUobserver.

On the eve of Ireland’s referendum on the EU treaty, the Irish “no” camp has accused France of trying to hide its intentions to push for beefing up EU military capabilities and creating an EU army commanded by Brussels.

According to Kathy Sinnott, independent MEP and fervent opponent of the Lisbon treaty, the French government is keeping a promised blueprint on European defence and security secret until after the crucial vote on Thursday (12 June).

“The French white paper on EU defence has been ready for release since May, but the French government are withholding it until after the Irish referendum,” the MEP said, demanding that the text be released immediately.

The rest of the article at the EUobserver.

Cowen can’t veto for Irish farmers – it’s a pie in the sky

Experts confirm that its nonsense, when the Irish Taoiseach (Prime Minister) promises to veto in WTO-negotiations. – He tries to deceive the Irish voters and farmers to vote yes to the Lisbon-treaty, states Søren Søndergaard from Peoples Movement in Denmark

The Irish Taoiseach (Prime Minister) Brian Cowen promised last week, that he will veto in EU and WTO against any agreement that gives worse conditions for the Irish farmers, whereupon the Irish Farmers Association IFA decided to recommend a yes to the Lisbon-treaty.

Member of The European Parliament for The Peoples Movement in Denmark Søren Søndergaard were astounded that Brian Cowen could promise this, and asked the European Committee of the Danish Parliament to ask the Danish government if Cowen could do so. The Government’s deadline to answer is today, but still there is no answer. And the Government will not promise an answer today.

But the Irish voters and the Irish farmers deserve to get the facts out in the open. So The Peoples Movement in Denmark has asked several experts, which all agree that a veto in EU and WTO is in conflict with the current EU treaties – and it will not get better for the Irish farmers with the Lisbon-treaty, states member of the European Parliament for The Peoples Movement in Denmark Søren Søndergaard an concludes:

The picture is clear: Taoiseach Brian Cowen tries to deceive the Irish voters and farmers to vote yes to the Lisbon-treaty with a pie in the sky.

Professor of international economics at University of Copenhagen Søren Kjeldsen-Kragh is one of the experts, which the Peoples Movement in Denmark has asked. He states crystal clear:

It’s nonsense to claim that a single member of the European Union or the Prime Minister of such can veto in WTO negotiations. The European Union acts as a state in international trade negotiations such as the WTO negotiations. International trade negotiations are a supranational matter. The EU acts as one unit with the authorization, it has from its institutions.

Professor of international economics at the University of Roskilde Jesper Jespersen explains that if the negotiations are about products, there is no veto. He refers to the textbook “Policy-making in the EU”:

“Article 133 (ex Art. 113 EEC) grants exclusive powers for common commercial policy to the EU. Together with agriculture and competition policy, the common commercial policy (henceforth EU trade policy), was one of the major areas of Community competence granted in the original Treaty of Rome. The treaty provisions set out how member governments should cooperate in reaching common positions on trade. These provide for the Council of Ministers to authorize the European Commission, in consultation with the member states, to negotiate trade agreements, which the council then adopts under a qualified majority voting rule.”

Helen Wallace, William Wallace and Mark A. Pollack, Policy-making in the EU, Oxford University Press, 2005, page 379

For further information or comments, please contact:

• Søren Søndergaard, member of The European Parliament for The Peoples Movement in Denmark,
  Mobile phone 00 45 40 45 38 49. E-mail: soren@folkebevaegelsen.dk Office in Bruxelles: ASP 07F343, Rue Wiertz, 1047 Bruxelles/Brussel, Belgique-België.
  Phone 00 32 2 284 51 52. Fax 00 32 2 284 91 52.

• Søren Kjeldsen-Kragh, professor of international economics, phone 00 45 35 33 22 81 (at work), 00 45 39 64 40 43 (at home) and 00 45 26 39 39 64 (mobile phone).

• Ib Roslund, press officer for Peoples Movement in Denmark. Phone 00 45 35 36 36 40 / e-mail: ib@folkebevaegelsen.dk

written by Arnaud HERVE

There are those who oppose anything European, those who accept anything European as providence, but there are also those in-between who desire a stronger Europe, while keeping a critical attitude as regards its democratic deficit. For the critical Europhiles, it was very good news indeed when the “European political parties” were created.

They are also labelled “European parties a European level” or “Europarties”. They were were embryonic in the treaty of Maastricht in 1992 (section 41), confirmed in the treaty of Amsterdam in 1997 (Article J.18 and Article K.13), but it is really the treaty of Nice in 2001 (Article 2, section 19) that granted them an autonomous status.

By Patrick Hennessy, Political Editor of Telegraph

British voters would back radical moves to negotiate a new, looser relationship with the European Union, a survey has shown.

The Sunday Telegraph reported on a new ICM poll for Global Vision, which found that when British voters were asked about their ideal relationship with Europe, 41 per cent chose one based simply on trade and co-operation.

Some 27 per cent wanted Britain to stay a full EU member while 26 per cent wanted to withdraw altogether.

If the “trade-only” option were offered in a referendum, 64 per cent said they would vote in favour.

Asked what should happen if Britain sought to negotiate a looser relationship but other nations blocked the move, 57 per cent said the UK should leave the EU, while 33 per cent said it should stay in.

If you Sense that you Might Someday rue a “yes”, Please Vote “no” on Lisbon

Unlike the Irish, hundreds of millions of other persons in Europe haven’t been enabled to step up to the ballot box with our opinion of the Treaty of Lisbon. This makes me regard Ireland and the quality of democracy in your country with a tinge of envy.

Over the years, we’ve seen many incremental changes made to the EU, from the initial unassuming brainchild of a Coal and Steel Community to arrival at a Customs Union and the EEC, building up eventually to the European Union. Instead of being accidental, a methodical process is being revealed to us.

As foretold before the results of the polls went upside down. From today the YES side has the lower hand with 30% while the NO side rose up to 35%.

Irish Times reports:

The poll shows the number of people intending to vote No has almost doubled to 35 per cent (up 17 points) since the last poll three weeks ago, while the number of the Yes side has declined to 30 per cent (down 5 points).

The number of undecided voters is still a significant 28 per cent (down 12 points) while 7 per cent won’t vote.

Future days until June 12th will be filled with different activities in Europe and Ireland. Europe will start its football “circensem” on Saturday, Mr. Bush will represent USA in summit with EU in Slovenia on Monday and Tuesday. Thursday seems so far away. TEAM encourages people of both in Ireland and Europe to do their best in this coming week and to make this a historic NO for empires and YES for the people’s democracies.

Opinion poll shows huge rise in anti-Lisbon sentiment
New poll shows Yes strategy has backfired, says No group
Latest Irish poll shows EU treaty heading for defeat
Art-exhibition in Slovenia: “Overheard Focuses”

ADDITION:

How we can once more save Europe from the Dark Ages
Lisbon treaty poised on a knife edge
Irish voters poised to kill off EU ‘stealth constitution’
Lisbon would be a giant leap in the dark
Cowen must not yield to Yes blackmail