BERTIE AHERN'S announcement that he will step down as Taoiseach on May 6th will not affect plans to hold the referendum on the Lisbon Treaty in the second week of June, Minister for Foreign Affairs Dermot Ahern has said.
The Taoiseach told the Dáil yesterday the referendum would probably take place on Thursday, June 12th.
Speaking at the launch of the Government's White Paper on the treaty, Minister Ahern said he did not anticipate yesterday's developments would have any effect on such plans.
Mr Ahern said the Government was publishing the White Paper to make the Lisbon Treaty as accessible as possible.
"The White Paper provides a clear, detailed and factual account of the content of the treaty," he said.
The Minister talked of the "considerable burden of expectation" on Ireland, given that it is the only member state to hold a referendum on the treaty.
The Lisbon Treaty, he said, was not a "radical" document.
"It does not introduce changes on the scale of Maastricht, nor herald the arrival of 12 new member states, as did the Nice Treaty.
"What it does is to provide the Union with the structures and policies that will allow us to continue to function effectively in the years ahead, while meeting the new challenges which face us."
Noting that EU membership had been an "exceptionally positive" experience for Ireland, Mr Ahern said the treaty represented an important step forward.
"I am confident that the Irish people will decide that our future lies in continued positive engagement with our EU partners.
"There is nothing to be gained for Ireland by turning our backs on a policy that has served us so well for 35 years, and donning the discredited cloak of euroscepticism."
Former Green Party MEP Patricia McKenna, who is campaigning for a No vote, accused the Government of "scaremongering". She said Minister Ahern had given the impression Ireland "would somehow be going a different road to the rest of Europe" if it voted against the Lisbon Treaty.
"Whether we vote Yes or No will not affect our membership of the EU and it is extremely dishonest of the Government to try and give such an impression," she added.