Peoples News Issue 62

The latest draft of an international treaty to toughen the enforcement of EU budget rules—the third in less than a month—dilutes the requirement to adopt a rule on a constitutional basis, binding governments not to exceed EU deficit and debt limits. Instead it says that the rule could be applied through “provisions of binding force and permanent character, preferably constitutional, that are guaranteed to be respected throughout the national budgetary processes."

It is possible that, if it survives further drafts, such language might strengthen the Government’s case in avoiding having to insert the rule in the Constitution and hence having a
referendum. Instead the Government might attempt to enact the Fiscal Compact Treaty through secondary legislation—a move that could be challenged only through the courts. The dilemma for the Government is that if the legislation were struck down in those circumstances it would go into the resulting referendum on the back foot.

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http://www.people.ie/news/PN-62.pdf

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