Irish POV: you needed a referendum commission

[Jeanniejampots80]

In Ireland for referendums we have a referendum commission. They are a body responsible for producing unbiased info for both sides in a referendum. They also can force sides to stop campaigning on lies e.g. The 350 million.

It might or might not have changed the result but it sure as hell should have made sure there were less lies bandied about by either side and that no one was voting based on a lie.

Lottapianos I think you are right,many believe the UK are the centre of the universe and frankly while important that's not true anymore. Yeah I have never given out ref commission too much thought before just accepted it but am grateful now when I see what can happen without one! God knows the lie the anti gay marriage campaign may have been able to spread without it

So interesting- thank you! I was talking to an Irish guy over the weekend bemoaning how it was too complicated and we were too economically illiterate for a referendum and he was saying just how many you have. Interesting to hear the background.

As well as the Referendum Commission, we are also quite happy to have a second referendum asking 'are you sure?'

burnished well I don't think we were happy at the time but we did change our minds when we had more info to be fair.

Apocalypse we have loads I think three last year? but ours are constitutionally binding. They can't be treated as opinion polls like the Brexit one is now seeming to be.

I think there have been 14 referenda since I turned 18. Often they run 2 together though. I have discovered that Irish people can vote in UK referendum but not vice versa.

Agree with others about the press here- none of the papers seem impartial, it's all editorialised. I'm living in a London bubble, colleagues are almost all Guardian reading, Labour voters so the result definitely came as a shock here. Today the shock for all of us medics is hearing Jeremy Hunt throw his name in the hat for PM.....

Rinceoir, Irish medic here and God when I read Jeremy Hunt might run I laughed very loud. After what he is trying to do the the docs?? Seriously.

They can't be treated as opinion polls like the Brexit one is now seeming to be.

Well the initial referenda on the Nice Treaty in 2001 and the Lisbon Treaty in 2008 were both treated as opinion polls and then re-run.

'Rinceoir, Irish medic here and God when I read Jeremy Hunt might run I laughed very loud'

NHS worker here and I laughed too, then felt shell shocked, then nauseous, then overwhelmed with confusion, then laughed again........ The world is indeed going utterly mad

Yes I haven't been here very long, although given how things are at home with contracts and recruitment freezes I suppose I may well be staying, but I've learned very quickly that he is fairly deplorable. Medics far more political here though, they'll happily stand up and fight him!

I wonder if he'll try to revoke EWTD protection here now? I've spent years working 36 hour shifts, only escaped it over the past year and don't fancy going back to it!

Well yes and no Mitzy, when the Lisbon Treaty ref was re run it was after we had received special concessions on certain things so technically it was a slightly different referendum. We rejected the first attempt and accepted the second attempt. So the result was not dismissed as an opinion the Irish Gov went back to the EU for changes and then re asked the question.

And the referendums in Ireland are for changes to the constitution so by rejecting there first Lisbon treaty no changes had to be made to technically it was accepted :)

I know they are, I've certainly voted in enough Irish referenda in my time!

Yes, I was going to comment regarding re-run referendum's.... Didn't we have a few where we gave the "wrong" answer and they told us to go back and try again 🙄...

Thankfully vast majority down to 24 hours now Rinceoir, at least in my area but yep would not put it past him as UK can no longer be fined for not adhering to EWTD when they leave.....not that it stops here of course