Deputies argue about the cost but agree to hold EU referendum over two days

The Sejm yesterday passed a motion that the EU referendum will last for two days. It will now take place on June 7 and 8. Despite the heated discussion, while 203 votes were necessary to accepted the motion, it sailed through wi th 366 votes, 16 against, and 22 abstentions. Members of the Sejm who voted against this decision claimed that an additional day for the referendum will lead to significant extra costs. According to the Voting Commission estimat es the second day of the referendum will cost around zł. 42 million. PSL le ader Jarosław Kalinowski was outraged by this figure saying it was enough to finance 20,000 student through higher education. Finance Minister Grzegorz Kołodko tired to calm tempers saying that the cost would be near zł. 16.5 m illion, and might even be lower still. "These costs are microscopic in rela tion to budget expenditures this year," he claimed. The National Electoral Office, striving to cut costs by zł. 5 million and bearing in mind the fias co with vote counting last time, decided not to outsource computer related services and to do the job by themselves. (Rzeczpospolita, p. A1; Gazeta Wy borcza, p. 1; www.rmf.pl) A.K.