Brussels, 21/09/2009 (Agence Europe) - With just two weeks to go until the second Irish referendum on the Lisbon Treaty (2 October), President of the Commission José Manuel Barroso pointed out to the Irish people in an interview to the Irish Times on 21 September: “The only way to ensure that Ireland will always have a commissioner is to vote Yes to Lisbon. If not, of course, we have to reduce the number of commissioners. This is in the current treaties and we are legally obliged to do it”. En route for New York, where he will be attending the UN's General Assembly for a week, Mr Barroso made a brief stop-over in Limerick, where he was asked about the consequences of a possible second “no” vote in Ireland: “It would be very negative, I have to tell you. We will respect the decision of the Irish people, whatever that decision is. But it would be very negative for all Europe, including of course Ireland”. The president of the European Commission also categorically refuted “intellectually and politically dishonest” arguments put around by the “no” vote campaign, such as the claim that the entry into force of the Lisbon Treaty would mean Ireland would be obliged to cut the rate of its minimum wage. Mr Barroso said that nothing of the sort would happen and that the opposition was “playing with fear” among citizens and sometimes telling “…lies, pure lies”. In the meantime, Irish Commissioner Charlie McCreevy, who had been on the receiving end of a certain amount of criticism for having been too passive during the first referendum in 2008, made a firm commitment to the Lisbon Treaty. In a speech in Dublin on 18 September, McCreevy predominantly highlighted the economic arguments in favour of the new treaty and argued that if Ireland voted no, the country would be at risk of losing any credibility among international investors, which would have dramatic consequences on its economy. According to the most recent polls, 53% of Irish people intend to vote for the Lisbon Treaty and 26% against. Twenty-six per cent of those polled are still undecided either way. (H.B./transl.rh)