FORUM ON EUROPE:FORMER SOCIALIST Party TD Joe Higgins has accused the chair of the Referendum Commission of "straying over the line" in remarks he made relating to a controversial European court ruling on workers' rights.
On RTÉs News at One programme on Wednesday, Mr Justice Iarfhlaith O’Neill was asked about concerns arising from the landmark Laval case last December, in which the European Court of Justice ruled that Swedish trade unions could not force a foreign company to abide by local pay agreements. The Laval case has been cited by several groups campaigning for a No vote in next month’s referendum on the Lisbon treaty.
Mr Justice O’Neill said the Laval case was “decided on pre-treaty”. It “does not affect what will happen when the treaty is ratified,” he added.
During a debate at the Forum on Europe in Dublin, Mr Higgins argued that the judge was “quite wrong” and claimed he was “straying over the line” between the Yes and No sides.
“The Referendum Commission should be very careful that they do not become involved on one side of the argument on the Lisbon Treaty,” he said.
The Socialist Party leader outlined why he believes the treaty should be rejected, arguing that Article 188 (c) of the text would lead to the privatisation of public services. “A No to Lisbon by the Irish people will send a powerful message that our public services are not commodities to be traded, handed over to profit-seeking corporations, for their shareholders rather than for the benefit of our people.”
Mr Higgins disagreed with former Labour leader Ruairi Quinn who told the forum that the Charter of Fundamental Rights, which will be legally binding under the treaty, would offer an unprecedented level of protection of citizens’ rights.
“I welcome any fundamental right that we can possibly win,” said Mr Higgins. “But the claims that are being made for the Charter of Fundamental Rights . . . are not sustainable. Many of the rights look good on paper but mean little in terms of being legally implementable.”
Mr Quinn, chairman of the Alliance for Europe, argued that a Yes vote would be a “giant leap” towards a social Europe. He said it offered the best of both worlds – a successful economy which put the rights of the citizen at its heart.
He called on the Irish Congress of Trade Unions (Ictu) to support Lisbon when they meet to decide their position next Wednesday.
This was backed by Blair Horan of the Ictu, who said: “In my view, of the five amending treaties we’ve had since we joined the EU in 1973, Lisbon is the most progressive in terms of workers’ rights and the social dimension.”