Domestic In Brief: Public opinion; Smithfield Foods; BOŚ

According to a recent poll by CBOS, 28% of Poles claim that, "things are hea ding in the right direction," while 58% remain pessimistic. However, some si gns of improvement have been revealed as in April only 15% assessed the situ ation as positive. "The result may stem from hopes connected with the prospe cts of joining the EU and with the termination of military operations in Ira q," commented CBOS. (Gazeta Wyborcza, p. 5) ... All fourteen pig farms belon ging to Smithfield Foods were guilty of breaches of environmental protection regulations and of sanitary and veterinary requirements, according to inform ation from the chief environmental protection inspector, Krzysztof Zaręba. (Rzeczpospolita, p. A5) ... Ten years in prison is the expected sentence for Dariusz M., head of the treasury department at the Gdańsk branch of Bank Och rony Środowiska (BOŚ), the main suspect in the case of the disappearance of around zł. 1.5 million from the bank's safe. (Rzeczpospolita, p. A5) K.Ż.