WARSAW

Over 64% of Poles are against the introduction of the euro in EU member Poland, including almost half voicing strong opposition, according to a new poll.

In an IBRiS survey for Radio ZET, some 24.5% of those surveyed support the idea of replacing the Polish zloty with the currency, while only 14.7% strongly agree with adopting the euro. The largest group of respondents are those who "definitely" disagree with this, 49%.

The poll showed that the largest number of respondents who do not want to replace the zloty with the euro live in rural areas (70%) and in small towns of up to 50,000 (75%). The situation is different in large cities with more than 250,000 inhabitants, although there still 48% do not want the euro while 42% are in favor.

Ruling coalition United Right voters are the largest group of opponents of the euro in Poland, with 97% against. Opposition voters are almost evenly divided, with 44% of respondents favoring replacing the zloty with the European currency and 43% against.

The ruling Law and Justice (PiS) party has made Poland not joining the eurozone a central part of its platform in the runup to this year’s parliamentary election.

Berlin and Brussels are keen for Poland to join, and the domestic opposition is also supportive. Former Prime Minister Donald Tusk has said the opposition Civic Coalition may agree to a referendum on euro participation.

Poland accepted in its 2004 EU accession treaty that it would one day join the euro, though there was no specified timetable for doing so.

Euro adoption would require the approval of at least two-thirds of the lower house of parliament to pass a constitutional amendment.

The latest European Commission and ECB Convergence Report found Poland met two out of four economic criteria related to price stability and public finances, but not exchange rate stability or long-term interest rates.