(MADRID) - Spain's lower house of parliament Thursday voted overwhelmingly in favour of ratifying the European Union's Lisbon Treaty, two weeks after its rejection by voters in Ireland.

The vote in the 350-member chamber of deputies was 322 in favor of "the bill approving the ratification by Spain of the Treaty of Lisbon," six against and two abstentions.

The treaty now goes to the Senate, and if it passes as expected, the ratification will then take effect.

The Senate vote had been planned for late September or early October. But Foreign Minister Miguel Angel Moratinos said it could be moved up to July, before the legislators take their summer break, so the treaty "can be ratified as soon as possible."

The reform treaty is aimed at streamlining the EU's institutions as the bloc expands.

Voters in Ireland, the only EU state constitutionally obliged to hold a referendum on the charter, rejected the treaty on June 12, throwing the bloc into crisis as it must be ratified by all 27 member states to come into force.

Spain is one of seven EU states that have still to approve the treaty via the parliamentary route.

The issue dominated a summit in Brussels last week and EU leaders asked Irish Prime Minister Brian Cowen to report back in October on what he thinks are the best options.

Other than Ireland, the Czech Republic is the member state which could still cause the biggest problem for the ratification process. The upper house has taken the matter to the constitutional court which is to rule on whether the text conforms to national laws.

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