Who will succeed Balcerowicz?

In an interview for the right-wing paper Nasz Dziennik, Prime Minister Jarosław Kaczyński said he had chosen a candidate to replace outgoing central-bank chief Leszek Balcerowicz, but refused to reveal who the person was.

"It is a relatively unknown person, although not in economic circles. The person might not have entered into direct conflicts with Leszek Balcerowicz but on many occasions made predictions about the economic situation in Poland. And, unlike the current chief banker, who has almost always been wrong, this person was right. And that's what I value a lot," Kaczyński said in an interview.

Balcerowicz's six-year term ends on January 10 and his replacement is expected to be appointed before the end of 2006, although not before the November local elections.

Among the top candidates rumored to be possible candidates for the post, the press names central-bank deputy governor Krzysztof Rybiński, council member Andrzej Sławinski and Finance Minister Zyta Gilowska.

However, after the interview in Nasz Dziennik published on Friday, economists speculated that the PM was pointing to Urszula Grzelońska, a 66-year-old economics professor from the Warsaw School of Economics. Grzelońska was part of a team of economists which proposed an alternative version of Balcerowicz's shock therapy reforms after the fall of communism in 1989.

When asked about a possible nomination, Grzelońska told PAP: "To date I have not received such a proposal, but one always considers such an offer." (Reuters)