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The frustration is tangible and so too, unfortunately, are the implied threats. Germany and France, the engines behind European Union (EU) reform proposals that were rejected by the Irish electorate, have been uttering comments implying that Ireland should go away and come back with the "right" answer.
"It cannot be," said German Interior Minister Wolfgang Schauble, an advocate of a Europe on a Berlin-Paris axis, "that a few million Irish make the decision for 495 million Europeans." That is exactly the point. Ireland should not be the only country to allow its citizens to vote. Let the Germans vote and the French. The EU should put the Treaty of Lisbon to the public but officials realise there is every indication voters in the EU would reject it.
Part of the reason the Irish said no to Lisbon was the fear of EU militarisation. Nonsense, say critics. But within hours of the Irish result coming in, Brussels threatened Iran with further sanctions. Using threatening language on other countries is not what the EU was meant to be about. There has been no public mandate for a United States of Europe and at the heart of the EU is a deficit of democracy. Plans drawn up by bureaucrats are well and good, but they must be supported by the European public.
Since the Irish vote, Britain's House of Lords has endorsed the treaty. This is wrong. Lisbon was meant to be endorsed by all EU nations. As it has not been, it must be dropped. This will allow the EU to focus on what it should be doing: boosting trade, cutting taxes and ensuring European countries can compete on the global stage. Any plans for armies, presidents and a super-state must be endorsed by the European public and not imposed upon them.
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