Nearly 70% of Poles do not want their country to join the eurozone, with conservative PiS voters being the most skeptical, according to recent polls.
According to a poll carried out by United Surveys for Wirčarna Polska, 66.8% of Poles would rather keep the zloty than adopt the euro, and almost half would prefer to join the eurozone. I am absolutely against it. Only 27.3% support the introduction of a European currency.
Twenty years after Poland joined the EU, support for membership in the eurozone remains relatively low among Poles, with citizens particularly concerned about rising prices for basic goods and fiscal policy in Brussels. The survey results show that people are concerned about being dependent on their decisions.
Skepticism about joining the eurozone is independent of party affiliation, with voters of both the nationalist opposition parties in Donald Tusk's current ruling coalition and pro-EU parties being skeptical.
Half of voters in the ruling coalitions Citizens United (KO, EPP/S&D), Third Way (Renew/EPP) and New Left (S&D) oppose the adoption of an EU currency, but there is a lack of support for such a decision. Only 37% support it.
Voters in the conservative opposition Law and Justice (PiS, ECR) and anti-EU coalitions have far more negative perceptions of the euro, and fewer want to join the eurozone. 4% are against it, while 95% are against it.
Despite public concerns, many economists believe that joining the eurozone will bring significant economic and political benefits to Poland.
Agnieszka Smolenska from the Polish Academy of Sciences and Paweł Tokarski from the Political and Social Foundation said: “As a member of the eurozone, Poland will fight more effectively to shape its economic governance system to be more responsive to security issues. It will be possible,” he said. This was stated in a report published by the Polish think tank Reform Institute.
Czech President Petr Pavel recently said a single currency would be “logical” for Prague, while Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk said in January that a deepfake TikTok post hinting at his opposition became popular. Despite the amount of money collected, no efforts have been announced to introduce a unified currency.
Poland is currently unable to join the eurozone because it does not meet convergence criteria such as price stability, sound finances, exchange rate stability and long-term interest rates.
Only seven EU member states maintain their own currencies: Bulgaria, the Czech Republic, Denmark, Hungary, Poland, Romania, and Sweden.
But the trend is clear, Agnieszka Cianciara of the Polish Academy of Sciences told a conference organized by the Institute for Civil Reform last September.
“Bulgaria is clearly on this path, and Sweden is returning to discussions about joining the eurozone,” he said.
(Aleksandra Krzysztošek | Euractiv.pl)
