The Lisbon Treaty

On 2nd October 2009 Irish people will vote on the Lisbon Treaty for the second time. It was first defeated in a ‘No’ vote in 2008.

The Treaty sets out to reform the institutions of the EU. The process started in 2002 with the formation of the Convention on the Future of Europe which in June 2004 resulted in the Constitutional Treaty. The Constitution was defeated in 2000 in France and the Netherlands. As a result, other EU Member States did not vote on it. The Constitution was then modified resulting in the Lisbon Treaty which all Member States have to ratify.

During the Convention and IGC, EAPN Ireland and EAPN (Europe) lobbied for a strong emphasis on fighting poverty, promoting rights and extending democracy. The analysis in the next section includes our interpretation as to how successful that process ultimately was.