Confirmed by supreme court: Spain first country to vote on constitution

Spain’s highest court has opened the way for a referendum on the new EU Constitution. Without disclosing the reasoning for its judgment, the court concluded that the European Constitution does not contravene the existing Spanish constitution. The Spanish government had been hoping for such a ruling, which confirms that the Spanish will be the first EU nation to hold a referendum on the Constitution, on 20th February next year. With both major parties pushing for a Yes vote and considerable public faith in the EU, the government is confident of success in the referendum.

Whilst ratification of the Constitution is seen as a certainty in nations where Parliament has the final word, the outcome in other countries holding referendums to determine ratification is less certain. Many European states, including Britain, France and the Netherlands, are committed to referendums, although plebiscites in Ireland and Denmark have shown that the EU can lose in national votes. In 1992, the Danes initially rejected the Maastricht Treaty, which concerned the establishment of the single European currency, and the Irish voted no to ratification of the Treaty of Nice in 2001. These results were, however, both overturned in subsequent referendums.