Barroso says 'no Plan B' if Ireland rejects EU reform treaty

(BRUSSELS) - European Commission chief Jose Manuel Barroso warned on Monday that there is "no Plan B" if Ireland rejects the EU's reform treaty in a referendum next month.

Ireland votes in a June 12 plebiscite on the European Union's key Lisbon treaty of reforms, with the latest poll showing the "Yes" camp's lead over "No" votes to be narrowing.

"There is no plan B in case it's 'no'," Barroso told a conference at European Policy Centre in Brussels.

"Let's hope the Lisbon treaty is ratified. If it is not done, we will all pay a price for it."

Ireland is the only one of the 27 European Union nations to vote on the treaty, and could scupper it altogether.

The treaty -- replacing the bloc's draft constitution rejected by French and Dutch voters in 2005 -- was signed by EU leaders in Lisbon last December amid much fanfare.

It aims to prevent decision-making gridlock.

In 2001, Ireland sent shockwaves through the bloc when it rejected the EU's previous Nice Treaty on institutional reform and enlargement. That decision was reversed in another referendum.