"Irish Justice Minister Dermot Ahern says substantial vote tallies across the country show the European Union Lisbon reform treaty has been rejected.
Tallies are not official, but Mr Ahern says it is clear the No vote is ahead in a vast majority of constituencies. "
Of course being the BBC they try some pro-EU spin:
"Correspondents say many voters did not understand the treaty despite a high-profile campaign led by Prime Minister Brian Cowen, which had the support of most of the country's main parties."
That would be the same Brian Cowen who said that he hadn't read the whole Treaty.
"The Lisbon Treaty replaces a more ambitious draft constitution that was rejected by French and Dutch voters in 2005."
"more ambitious", how about practically identical in result?
"Just over three million Irish voters are registered - in a European Union of 490 million people."
Nice try BBC, no other country has held a referendum. The French couldn't because they knew the electorate would vote NO. As the French President Nicolas Sarkozy said at a meeting of senior MEPs, (reported in EUobserver, 14 November 2007) "France was just ahead of all the other countries in voting No. It would happen in all Member States if they have a referendum. There is a cleavage between people and governments … There will be no Treaty if we had a referendum in France, which would again be followed by a referendum in the UK."
"In 2001, Irish voters almost wrecked EU plans to expand eastwards when they rejected the Nice treaty. It was only passed in a much-criticised second vote."
Will the EU try the "keep voting until you get right approach" again or will the majority of the provisions be slipped through in the next "Accession Treaty"?
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