DEPARTMENT OF Agriculture inspectors could be putting the Lisbon Treaty referendum at risk by their "doggedness" in penalising farmers in payment schemes, in some cases to the extent of pursuing a "vendetta", it was claimed in the Dáil.
Ulick Burke (FG, Galway East) warned that the Government parties in particular had a duty to "clearly rise from their slumber" and show the public their commitment to Europe to ensure the treaty was passed.
He said the doggedness of Department of Agriculture inspectors "had resulted in the penalisation of applicants by 50 per cent of payments for insignificant administrative reasons".
Penalties were also applied unjustly in the areas of heritage and the environment and "their implementation suggests individual officials are pursuing a vendetta. I hope this problem will be corrected, because the core opposition to the treaty in certain areas stems not from the arguments promoted by those campaigning against it, but from the failure of departmental officials to implement" EU directives as intended.
"The people who are hurt by this will obviously have serious reservations about supporting the treaty in the referendum."
Mr Burke said it was unfair that EU directives were implemented much more strictly in Ireland than in other EU countries. "On numerous occasions, the Government has unfairly blamed Europe for its own inability to fairly apply many of its policies." He was speaking during the ongoing debate on the 28th Amendment to the Constitution Bill, which paves the way for the Lisbon Treaty referendum to take place.
Speaking earlier, Minister for Agriculture Mary Coughlan said that "in practical terms, the reform treaty will not alter the arrangements that currently apply in the agriculture and fisheries sectors to any great extent. The reform treaty introduces the principle of qualified majority voting to certain new areas, but the principle has been enshrined in the agriculture and fisheries sectors for some considerable time. While there will be some alterations to the thresholds for reaching a qualified majority under the new arrangements, these alterations will not have significant implications for decision-making. The reality is that most decisions on agriculture and fisheries are arrived at by consensus. It is highly unusual for matters to come to a vote on agriculture and fisheries issues and when they do, close voting margins are unusual."
Chris Andrews (FF, Dublin South-East) highlighted the five main changes to be introduced by the Lisbon Treaty, including "a two and a half year presidency of the council instead of a rotating six-month one, the reduction of the Commission from 27 to 18 in 2014, the increase in the legislative powers of the European Parliament, the increase in the role of national parliaments and making the Charter of Fundamental Rights a legally-binding document."
Arthur Morgan (SF, Louth) claimed that in "meekly signing up to a treaty that erodes our say in decision-making at EU level", TDs from other parties "are betraying the ideals of independence, autonomy and self-government, which were fought for in the struggle for Irish freedom by many generations". His party was against it "because from any reasonable assessment it's not in Ireland's interests. We are disappointed that there are not more voices in this House courageous enough to admit that fact."
Jim O'Keeffe (FG, Cork South West) hit out at the Catholic newspaper Alive!, which he claimed was "peddling fiction" that if the referendum passed, "we will have lost the right to decide" on abortion and euthanasia. "This is utter poppycock and I question the approach of those in my church who are arranging or facilitating the dissemination of such misinformation." The debate continues.
