PM Tusk rules out early election

Prime Minister Donald Tusk has no intention of calling an early parliamentary election despite Poland's centre-right government's lead in opinion polls.

Polish newspapers have speculated that Tusk may call an early advantage, a move that would take advantage of his popularity and overcome the conservative opposition of adopting the euro in 2011 or 2012.

"I say absolutely no to the idea of early parliament elections," Tusk told thePolityka weekly. "I believe the Polish people deserve respect and we can't ask them to go to vote just because of some opinion polls that are beneficial to us at the moment."

Tusk plans to introduce the joint currency will require changes to Poland's constitution, which now stipulates that only Polish central bank can set monetary policy, a task that is taken over by the European central bank. However, Tusk's government falls short of the two third majority needed in parliament to alter the constitution. Premier Jarosław Kaczyński has been vocal about his party being opposed to an early euro adoption.

Tusk said that he was ready to hold a referendum next spring on the issue of when Poland should adopt the euro. (AO)

Source: Reuters