June 12 (Bloomberg) -- Irish voters who oppose the European Union's planned governing treaty in a referendum today may well not have understood what the document means for the bloc, Luxembourg Prime Minister Jean-Claude Juncker said.

``The treaty is good for Ireland and good for the EU,'' Juncker said in comments to Polish newspaper Rzeczpospolita published today and confirmed by his office. Fears connected with the treaty ``most often stem from the fact that we use a language incomprehensible for ordinary people,'' he said.

A ``no'' vote in today's referendum would kill the treaty, designed to streamline decision-making in the 27-member bloc and create the post of permanent president. Ireland is the only EU country holding a popular ballot on the document, which must be approved by all member states to take effect.

``We have to remember that people aren't interested in institutional reform,'' Juncker said. ``They're interested in everyday problems and whether the EU can improve their standard of living.''

Polls opened at 7:00 a.m. this morning, while counting is scheduled to begin tomorrow at 9:00 a.m.

To contact the reporter on this story: Katya Andrusz in Warsaw at kandrusz@bloomberg.net

Last Updated: June 12, 2008 04:37 EDT