Member-State Referendums and Constitutional Change: The Wider Implications for the EU Brigid Laffan Director 1

2 DateTreatyYesNoTurnout Accession SEA TEU Amsterdam Nice Nice Lisbon Lisbon Fiscal Compact

9 Referendums/ largest number of all member states 7 Yes/2 No Bunreacht na hÉireann: Article ° enabling the laws of the then European Communities entering into the Irish legal system (Third amendment of the constitution) 3 Ireland

1987 the Supreme Court deliberated on Crotty v. An Taoiseach. – Crotty Judgement has had major effects – Crotty renders a constitutional amendment necessary in Ireland whenever the Government wishes the State to ratify a Treaty which in the view of the Irish courts would go beyond the ‘essential scope’ or ‘objectives’ of the existing Treaties 4 Ireland: A Referendum Country

Negotiations in the shadow of a referendum Impact of Outcome (Yes/No) A ‘No’ becomes a European Question Response to a ‘No’ 5 Implications For the Wider EU

6 In the Aftermath of a No Outside-In Dynamic Domestic Dynamics Inside-out Dynamics Inside-Out Dynamics

One Commissioner per Member State Declaration on Workers’ Rights Clarification on issues of domestic and specific interest 7 The New Deal

More Knowledge about the EU? Ownership of decisions-deliberaton over a short time framework but intense Consent of the People 8 The Value of Direct Democracy

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