So Ireland has voted overwhelmingly in favour of accepting the Lisbon Treaty, and the whole of Europe has breathed a sigh of relief.

On a personal level, this will mean that I have to spend a lot less time defending the nation of my birth to people who know nothing more about it than it's a wartorn, anti-European but pretty little island on the Western edges of the continent, that also just happens to produce some tasty butter. Yes, Kerrygold and stereotypes based on nationality are available over here too.

As most of you know, I am staunchly pro-Europe, and consider my European identity much more important to me than my Irish one. This is a stance that is generally greeted with a significant amount of distrust whenever I am back on the island, as though my appreciation of the bigger picture is some sort of subversion or rejection of my Irishness.

This is entirely not that case.

Every single person is made up of many, many different identities. We're like onions - peel away one level and there's another one lying just beneath it. It's up to the individual to decide which one is more important.

I, for example, am a European, an Irishman, a Westmeathman, a Mullingarman, a Rathcolmaner and a Glennon. First and foremost, I am my father's son, a Glennon. This is the only aspect of my identity that is completely sacred and will never be compromised.

At the moment, I value my European identity the highest of the others, however this is not to say that this will always be the case. I agree very strongly with the concept that the European Union is based upon - a borderless union of states that agree to help each other out economically, politically, culturally and militarily (if necessary) through international co-operation, shared values and above all, free movement of their citizens. There's no doubt that every member of the EU benefits from this. It's the biggest and most widespread session of backscratching that the world has ever seen, and I am inordinately proud to be taking part.

So, who's itchy?