Former European Parliament president Pat Cox has said a Yes vote in the Lisbon Treaty referendum is the only platform for economic recovery available to Ireland.
Mr Cox warned the economic consequences of a No vote would be “dramatic and wholly negative” when he spoke at the launch of civil society group Ireland for Europe’s new referendum poster campaign in Dublin.
“I do not say a Yes vote is a guarantee of recovery. It is the platform for recovery. It is up to us to make use of it,” he said.
“But let us be clear. The heart of Europe is the only platform we have for recovery. None other is available.”
Mr Cox said the State was at a crossroads, with a road leading to economic recovery and another to ruin.
“October 2nd is D-Day for Ireland and the Irish – a date with destiny – a decision whose consequences will mark us for a generation,” he said.
While the vote was on a legal text, the result would give a signal to Ireland’s European partners and the wider world because it would be taken in a “political, economical and psychological” context.
Mr Cox said the immediate economic effects of a No vote would be uncertainty for those planning to invest in Ireland and an increase in the costs of borrowing, as well as a collapse of consumer confidence.
He said Ireland would find itself isolated politically within the European Union.
“We would be relegated to the second tier of a two-tier Europe along with Eurosceptic countries like Britain. That’s not where we should be, or want to be.”
A Yes vote would have immediate positive benefits for Ireland, he insisted. It would reassure the international financial community that the Irish were “getting our act together”, Mr Cox said, adding that this would help stabilise the cost of borrowing.
“We are at a cross roads. The choice we make on 2nd October will determine our future for generations. One road leads to economic recovery. The other to economic ruin.”
He added that a Yes vote would be “an unequivocal statement of confidence and belief in the future”.
He called on voters to “rise above” their understandable anger about bankers, developers, tax hikes and cutbacks.
Mr Cox has stepped down temporarily from his role as president of the International European Movement to act as Ireland for Europe’s director.
