THE EUROPEAN Union will not take away exclusive control of any issue from member states under the Lisbon Treaty, the independent Referendum Commission has said.
In its information website on the treaty, the commission, chaired by Mr Justice Iarfhlaith O'Neill, said the EU would gain "joint competence" with states on energy and "aspects of the environment and public health".
He added: "But it does not propose to give the EU any new exclusive competence."
Two million copies of the commission's 14-page summary of the treaty are to be posted to every home over coming weeks, starting in about a fortnight's time.
The commission's website (www.lisbontreaty2008.ie) offers a slightly expanded version of the document that will be posted to every home as part of a €5 million public information campaign.
In addition, a Lo Call telephone service (1890 270970) has been set up where the public can call for information. People can also check if they are on the electoral register on the commission's website, and can download application forms if they are not.
The commission has said that while greater use would be made of qualified majority voting if the treaty were ratified, such voting rules would not apply to taxation and other key issues for Ireland.
Decisions on energy, asylum, immigration, and sport could be taken by majority, rather than unanimous voting. "Certain decisions will continue to be made unanimously - they include decisions on defence and taxation. This means that any member state may veto a proposed change in these areas," it said.
The European Parliament would be given much greater powers than it currently enjoys in its day-to-day dealings with the European Commission and member states, it added.
If passed, final decisions on legislation on agriculture, asylum, immigration, judicial co-operation in criminal and civil matters, and the internal market would have to be made jointly with MEPs.
Currently, the Council of Ministers, representing member states, has the final say over some budget issues, but, if passed, MEPs would have joint decision-making powers over the entire EU budget.
At present, the European Parliament and the Council have joint decision-making powers over most of the EU's budget, but the Council has the final say over certain spending items.
If the Lisbon Treaty comes into force from the beginning of next year then the European Parliament and the Council will have joint decision-making powers over the entire EU budget.
The treaty would also change the way EU rules could be altered in the future. However, this would not change the need to hold referendums in Ireland.
Currently, EU treaties are amended only when states agree an amending treaty which is then approved by each state according to its own laws, as is happening now with Lisbon and happened previously with Nice, Maastricht and Amsterdam.
"In almost all cases this involves parliamentary approval. In some cases, for example in Ireland, a referendum may be required," said the commission, which said it had received legal advice on its pronouncements.
Under Lisbon, however, the European Council would have the power to "propose changes to certain parts of the governing treaties", as long as such changes did not grant new competences to the EU, and as long as they were agreed unanimously.
