EU leaders set to buy time on Lisbon Treaty[fr][de] 

Irish Prime Minister Brian Cowen will present EU leaders with his analysis of the situation over dinner tonight. But big decisions over what to do next will be delayed in order to give Dublin time to propose concrete solutions, diplomats said.

Commission President José Manuel Barroso on Thursday (19 June) said "Ireland will be given time to assess the results and to come forward with a solution", adding that the next EU summit in October will provide this opportunity for further discussion.

Speaking at a joint press briefing with Barroso, Cowen agreed. "It is necessary for Ireland to have time now to analyse this vote and explore options," he said, adding that it is "far too early for anyone to put forward proposals". The Irish premier added that he will hold separate discussions with German Chancellor Angela Merkel and other EU leaders before dinner.

Kim Darroch, the UK Permanent Representative to the EU, told journalists on 17 June that no major decisions were to be expected on the issue at the summit. With some irony, he said the most important item on the agenda was not the Irish referendum but the accession of Slovenia to the euro zone.

The failed Irish referendum will be discussed over dinner by the heads of state and government, while foreign ministers discuss the situation in the Western Balkans.

But Darroch said he did not expect the Irish Government to come up with a detailed solution at this stage.

Meeting clause?

Pierre Sellal, the French Ambassador to the EU, predicts that the Summit Conclusions are likely to contain a "meeting clause" where European leaders could gather again to solve the institutional headache posed by the rejection of the Lisbon Treaty in Ireland. He added that the next EU summit, to take place in October under the French Presidency, "could give an opportunity to take stock" of the situation.

But he was adamant that ratification would continue in the meantime, saying "nobody has called into question the ratification process where it has not yet reached its conclusion".

"I would be surprised if Mr. Cowen said that we should stop it all," said Sellal, pointing out that EU leaders now expect the Irish authorities to spell out what they want from other EU nations in order to solve the crisis.

"We can have declarations that comfort Ireland about its sovereignty in key areas," Sellal said, referring in particular to defence and tax policy. But he added that "this assumes that the Irish authorities tell us what they want".

The UK Parliament gave the Treaty's supporters a boost when it ratified the text by a comfortable majority on Wednesday (18 June).

Summit to focus on rising food and fuel prices

Meanwhile, EU leaders will focus the summit on issues which are more relevant to citizens' daily lives, with discussions scheduled to take place on rising food and fuel prices (EurActiv 19/06/08). "One of the ways of responding [to the Irish 'no'] is to show that we are capable of acting in the interest of citizens," said Sellal. "What one wants from a public authority is that it brings protection to citizens and to businesses."

Referring to the European Commission's late reaction to widespread anger over rising fuel costs, he added: "It is very difficult to justify your existence through inaction."