Vol. 471 No. 5
89 Mr. R. Burke asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs whether the Government remains committed to its undertaking to hold a referendum in the event of a proposed change in Ireland's policy of neutrality; and the circumstances under which the Government will hold such a referendum. [21286/96]
The commitment of the Government is clear and has been confirmed in this House on numerous occasions. As stated in paragraph 4.115 of the Government White Paper on Foreign Policy, the Government has undertaken to put the outcome of any future negotiations that would involve Ireland's participation in a common defence policy to the people in a referendum. This will ensure that Ireland's policy of military neutrality remains unchanged, unless the people themselves decide otherwise.
As I indicated in reply to questions from Deputy Burke and Deputy Ahern on 31 October, this commitment is consistent with the declaration of the four party leaders before the Maastricht referendum which confirmed that any decision arising from the EUs 1996 Intergovernmental Conference on defence for the EU would require a further referendum.
