Surveys indicate that the Irish are strong supporters of EU membership and the integration process. The problem is that these favorable attitudes vary considerably in intensity and constitute a “soft bloc” of support for the EU; in the 2008 referendum, this soft bloc crumbled in the final week of the campaign.
但形势依然难言清晰。研究显示爱尔兰人是欧盟成员国资格和欧洲整合进程的强大支持者。然而问题是这种支持的态度经常急剧变化并形成一个支持欧盟的“软性集团”，但就在2008年公投前最后一周的关键时刻，这个“软性集团”却走向了土崩瓦结。