Ireland poised to approve EU pact Irish Prime Minister Enda Kenny in Washington on March 17, 2011. UPI/Olivier Douliery/POOL DUBLIN, Ireland, June 1 (UPI) -- Unofficial results indicate voters in Ireland have approved of the European Union fiscal pact, which allows for continued emergency funding after 2013. The British Broadcasting Corp. said Friday vote counting was ongoing, but early results indicate 60 percent of voters approved the referendum that supports the EU's fiscal budget rules. Approving the pact puts Ireland in a tough spot. Countries approving the measure agree to cut budget deficits to less than 0.5 percent of the country's gross domestic product. Ireland's deficit in 2011 was 13.1 percent of its GDP. If the no vote prevails, however, it would cut Ireland off from receiving a new round of international assistance after its current bailout package runs out in 2013. "The treaty will solve nothing, but ... we're going to need European money next year, plain and simple," said Bridget Connolly, who voted to approve the pact. "We can't afford to be thumbing our noses at Europe right now," she said. The turnout was moderate with fewer than half of the registered voters going to the polls, the BBC said.