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YOU MAY NOT have heard much about it, but there’s an EU referendum happening today.
No, it’s not the Brexit vote – the UK doesn’t go to the polls until 23 June.
Today Dutch voters will be making their voices heard on a key European cooperation deal with Ukraine, in a vote organised by eurosceptic groups and seen as a proxy poll on EU ties.
However, after a low-key campaign many of the country’s 12.5 million eligible voters still say they are puzzled by what exactly they are voting for in the poll, only the second since 2005 on European Union issues.
In an added twist, observers say the referendum’s non-binding outcome is more important to Ukraine, where a pro-EU revolution ousted Kiev’s Russian-backed leadership in 2014 and has made active moves to strengthen links with the West.
Dutch organisers last week admitted the vote on the so-called EU Association Agreement – which mainly bolsters trade with Kiev – is essentially not about Ukraine, but a handy platform to push a broader anti-EU agenda and “give citizens more say in Brussels”.
“We want a referendum because we feel somebody has to ring the alarm bells for our democracy,” said Bart Nijman of the GeenPeil (No Poll) lobby group.
GeenPeil is one of three movements that helped trigger the popular vote on the back of a new Dutch law that allows citizens to retroactively voice opinions on legislative decisions.
The Netherlands is now the only country in the 28-nation EU bloc still to ratify the accord and the deal has been given the thumbs up by both the upper and lower houses of the Dutch parliament.
“The EU wants too much, too fast and thereby Brussels seems to have lost the people’s mandate,” Nijman, a key organiser of the No campaign told AFP.
Dutch dilemma
His group holds up the EU-Ukraine accord as a typical example of an over-reaching bureaucratic Brussels that doesn’t consult its citizens before making decisions.
With campaigning stepping up pace this weekend, aided by some top Ukrainian officials on special visits seeking to push a Yes vote, many remain baffled.
“I know there’s a referendum about an accord, but I don’t know more than that,” said Ans, 49, a Dutch voter when asked by AFP.
The referendum however is only advisory, and the Dutch government has repeatedly said it will await the outcome before deciding what steps to take.
But if Wednesday’s turnout reaches the 30% threshold needed for the poll to be valid – and if a No vote against the Kiev deal wins – Prime Minister Mark Rutte and the Netherlands, which currently holds the rotating EU presidency, will be left facing a major embarrassment, analysts say.
While the government has abstained from actively campaigning, Dutch cabinet ministers including the Liberal Rutte and his junior partner, Labour Party’s Deputy Prime Minister Lodewijk Asscher have urged citizens to vote in favour of the deal.
“I’m whole-heartedly voting Yes… because I fully believe it’s good for both the Netherlands and Ukraine,” Asscher told reporters last week.
He lashed out at those “abusing” the referendum as an anti-EU platform.
“Let me be very clear. This is about Ukraine, even if you have criticism of the EU,” Asscher said, adding “there are other ways to make anti-EU feelings known”.
‘Nexit?’
Tony van der Togt, senior researcher at The Hague’s respected Clingendael think-tank, told AFP the EU-Ukraine referendum has been hijacked by eurosceptics in the Netherlands pushing a broader agenda.
It was “more to make an anti-EU statement… more about tackling the EU and they would even consider pushing a ‘Nexit’ in the future,” he said, alluding to Britain’s move.
Van der Togt also warned the Dutch referendum could set a dangerous precedent for other European countries.
“There is a risk that all kinds of other referenda in other European countries are going to be organised. If you allow this to happen everywhere within the EU you can’t take any decisions any more,” he said.
But Henk Loos, 59, said he’ll cast a No vote against the accord next week.
“It’s good to have a referendum. It’s good because the people are going to make their voices heard,” Loos said.
© – AFP 2015 edited by Daragh Brophy.
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There is no misinformation; banks are just not lending!
won’t be long and everyone commenting will be running to the banks
Sme’s think the bank is not lending is a fact and not something they just made up.
The banks have lost all trust and credibility with the vast majority of the public and I for one don’t believe anything they say.
Look, just becuase everyone saw the sky today does NOT mean it was there, ok!? #BOI
how can a bank our group of banks reject the findings of its regulatory body? something is very broken when rule breakers can turn around and refute regulators reports and say we don’t accept the findings in safe knowledge that no one will challenge them
Who do you think runs Ireland, Europe and the World?
I’m Md of a specialist engineering company we have a clean record with our bank Boi,nAnd guess what?nThey are NOT lending!nHow can an Irish Sme grow and create jobs without business loans?nAnd our spineless government haven’t the balls to tackle them??
True for you BTW Whatever happened to the FG proposal to have a reconstruction bank? Is it on the back burner because they want businesses to bail out our zombie banks? Many don’t even bother to try to get loans due to the negative experience of others.
Can anyone name a FG election promise that was kept?? I can’t !
Know what? BOI dont fully qualify as a bank any more. Definition of a bank- 1. an institution for receiving, lending, exchanging, and safeguarding money and, in some cases, issuing notes and transacting other financial business.
The banks are offering to lend, no doubt about that but its the T&C that SME’s can not comply with.
They can then report to the Government that they have made an offer and the company did not avail of it.
Spin, I believe that’s what it is called.
Well if bank of Ireland says it’s not true and that they are bending over backwards to help sme s then it must be true and I have to believe them….tsk tsk ..silly people casting doubt on such a venerable institution
Exactly Marc, if BOI says it’s lending than it is lending and we are all very silly for believing to the contrary …………..despite all the evidence. Did you see the new BOI ad on TV, they really do care about us, they really do!!!!!!!
In jan 2012 applied to increase overdraft from €5000 to €7500,yes that €2.500 increase.aug 2012 no answer just told they haven’t come back .
God love self employed Ireland.
80% of applications approved? Yes, if you count renewals of existing facilities where they have little choice. What’s the % for approvals of NEW money going out the bank’s door?
The minister for finance said in the dail we can’t believe what the banks say so what has changed NOTHING !!!
They have consistently lied to the past government this government the central bank the regulator and now the people of Ireland.
Why do we still doff our caps ?
Eh? Isn’t that a bit like the bloke beating you over the head with a baseball bat being concerned that you believe he’s the violent sort??
They are more concerned, at being found out! Who told the dogs on the street, find them and put them down!
If bank of Ireland are sooooo concerned why don’t they start lending
Bank of Ireland really really loves us all….it’s just misunderstood
OK here we go…
What if, and its a big if, the banks are only reflecting how really shagged the economy is. Then its better not to be throwing good money after bad. We would end up bailing the shaggers out again if they were making huge losses.
Also the government would be delighted that everyone was focusing on the bad bad bankers rather than how fu**ed the economy really is….yes/no?
If a business is loosing money and succeeds in borrowing to cover this loss what happens next year etc.
Can’t we just sack the lot, save the money and get decent banks and bankers in?!!
That last bit was a joke, if course!
Decent bankers… :-))
have your say