Pádraic McCormack (Galway West, Fine Gael)

Fine Gael, along with all the mainstream political parties, the IFA and other farming organisations, most of the trade unions and the bishops all advocated a "Yes" vote in the referendum, yet 53.4% of voters voted "No". I fully accept this is the democratic decision of the people, but we must ask why.

I know why the people voted against the treaty in parts of west Galway. It is a typical constituency and had the same turnout and result as were evident nationally. The constituency comprises Galway city, a farming area to the east of the city and all of Connemara to the west. While all parties with the exception of one supported the treaty, there was a certain arrogance in the way they, including Fine Gael, some MEPs and others associated with Europe, presented the case for it. No longer can we say to the people that they should vote "Yes" just because we say so. The people have lost their trust in politicians and will not take them at face value. It is sometimes no wonder that they have lost their trust; it is a fact of life that they have.

It would be best if, before a treaty referendum, there was a completely independent assessment of the facts, after which voters could be urged to vote on those facts as they saw fit, bearing in mind that they would be voting in a referendum and not on a political issue. I can prove why this would be more effective. Two supporters of mine entered my office on the Monday before the referendum and asked if it would be any harm if they voted "No". I stated it would not but asked them to read an independently produced leaflet before making up their minds. I met them before voting on Thursday and both intended to vote "Yes". I did not ask them to do so; they made up their own minds as a result of me having presented to them a neutral view of the treaty. Not having presented such information was the mistake political parties made in the referendum.

Another reason the referendum result is a wake-up call is evident in Connemara. The people of Connemara, rightly or wrongly, reacted against EU directives. They reacted against one stipulating that they could not cut turf on designated bogs from 1 February this year and against another that is putting small fishermen out of business due to restrictions placed on their catch. Small inshore fishermen are being put out of business completely. The voters reacted in several other ways also.

About five weeks before the referendum, I was at a meeting in Maam Cross called by the hill sheep farmers over a directive stipulating that they must have their sheep off the mountains for five months of the year. Over 450 farmers were present. They invited the Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government to the meeting — I am sorry Deputy White is no longer in the Chamber — but his officials wrote to say he regretted that he must decline the invitation as there were alternative established procedures. They also stated: "It has also been our experience that convening mass meetings of farmers, particularly in the evenings, is not constructive to a good debate." I do not know when one can call mass meetings of farmers if not in the evening.

Let me outline two examples of vote results in Connemara. In Ardmore, Kilkieran, 37 voted "Yes" and 155, or approximately 81%, voted "No". In Ballyconneely, 56 voted "Yes" and 181 voted "No", despite the fact that a Minister and five Fianna Fáil councillors from the area were all promoting a vote in favour of the treaty. In Ballyconneely, for example, the local councillor, a very popular man and supporter of the Government, had his photograph on posters on all the poles advocating a "Yes" vote, yet the treaty was rejected by 76% of the voters in his area.

It is worth hearing the reason for this rejection. For 200 years there had been pony racing on Aillebrack beach at Ballyconneely but it was banned three years ago by the Office of Public Works because there was a danger of a rare plant being eliminated. The people reacted against this decision. The races had facilitated an annual family outing for 200 years in this isolated area of Connemara and they never affected the rare plant because it would not be there today if they did. The pony races only took up a 20-foot wide strip of the wide 600 acre beach or commonage. No wonder the people voted "No" against the wishes of the Minister, the local councillor and me — I have some say in the area because I get a good vote there.

The Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government must take the Connemara and Mayo farmers seriously. There were many farmers from Mayo, including Westport, at the meeting in Maam Cross. Deputy Beverley Flynn, who is present, should note this. If the Minister and EU do not address the real concerns that exist, we will have no hope of ratifying a treaty such as that presented in the referendum.

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