Irish voters are being asked to approve the EU’s fiscal compact – an agreement signed by 25 out of 27 member states including Malta – which introduces further fiscal discipline among the signatory member states.

According to the latest polls it seems that the “Yes” vote is expected to win in the referendum.

The fiscal compact, or what the EU calls the “Treaty on stability, coordination and governance in the Economic and Monetary Union”, is a 24-page document signed last March by all EU member states except the UK and the Czech Republic. It commits member states to maintain their budgets in balance or surplus and provides for the European Court of Justice (ECJ) to fine countries up to 0.1 per cent of their GDP if they fail to apply it once ratified.

According to the treaty, non-participating member states will not be able to tap rescue funds from the European Stability Mechanism, the eurozone’s future bailout fund, an important aspect for Ireland which currently is benefiting from an EU-IMF bailout.

The treaty will only come into force once a minimum of 12 member states ratify the text. Malta has not yet ratified the treaty but is expected to do so through Parliament before the House of Representatives adjourns for its summer recess.

The four latest opinion polls in Ireland show that the referendum will be approved, with the “Yes” side ahead by a comfortable 14 to 20 points and most pollsters predicting around 60 per cent of those voting will vote in favour of the treaty.

The referendum campaign preceding today’s vote has led to some interesting developments in Irish politics with the Republican Sinn Fein gaining huge popularity by promoting an anti-austerity plan that includes rejection of the treaty itself.

On the other hand, the Irish coalition government, made up of the centre-right Fine Gael party and the centre-left Labour party, has made the withdrawal of bailout funds a central issue in its campaign.

Prime Minister Enda Kenny said in a speech on Irish TV that the treaty would “create stability in the eurozone, which is essential for job creation”.

Greece, Portugal, Poland, Romania and Slovenia have already ratified the treaty through their respective parliaments.

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