Eamon Gilmore (Dún Laoghaire, Labour)

The Referendum Commission has made it clear that it is not possible to postpone the referendum. Second, it would not be a good idea to postpone it because what the country needs is certainty, not indecision. All of us, as individual citizens, will have a decision to make on 31 May. We will have an opportunity to make a strong statement that, as a country, we are certain about the euro; that we want to have stability; that we want investors to have confidence in the country; that there is no question about the country's relationship with the euro, and that we want to have access to emergency funding should we ever need it. There will be certainty when the people make a decision on 31 May. I do not intend, therefore, to accept Deputy shane Ross's Bill. It is a rather extreme measure to avoid a situation where he cannot make up his mind on where he stands on the treaty. I was in his constituency on Saturday-----

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