TAOISEACH BRIAN Cowen has spoken to British prime minister Gordon Brown as part of a concerted campaign to get the support of all other 26 EU member states for the legal guarantees being sought by Ireland in advance of a second referendum on the Lisbon Treaty.
Mr Cowen spoke to Mr Brown on Monday evening, following conversations with other EU leaders including German chancellor Angela Merkel, about the legal standing to be accorded to the guarantees being sought by the Government.
British reservations about the legal status of the guarantees being given to Ireland are the main stumbling block at the two-day EU summit which begins in Brussels tomorrow. The Government wants the guarantees which cover three main areas – neutrality, taxation and ethical issues such as abortion – to be given legal standing in the form of a protocol which will be attached to the next EU treaty.
The British are objecting to any procedure that would involve any hint of the Lisbon Treaty having to be ratified again by parliament, fearing it would reopen the deep divisions that exist in Europe.
The Taoiseach and the Minister for Foreign Affairs, Micheál Martin, are hoping that if the other 25 EU countries can be persuaded to back the Irish approach, the pressure on the British to agree will prove irresistible.
