Poolse president voor referendum over EU-grondwet eind 2005 (en)

The referendum on the Constitution in Poland should take place at the same time as the next presidential elections planned for the end of 2005, said Polish President Aleksander Kwasniewski on Tuesday (5 October).

Poland will join ten other EU member states which have said they will hold a referendum on the Constitution.

"The constitutional treaty is not perfect, indeed we had a number of things to say about it, but we do not have the right to take decisions which could split Europe", warned Mr Kwasniewski, according to Polish news agency PAP.

Tough debate is expected before the referendum on the document as the number of supporters and opponents is about evenly divided.

"I feel personally that the constitutional treaty should be voted on during the presidential election. That way we would see which presidential candidates are supporters of a Europe united in its diversity", said Mr Kwasniewski.

Referendums on the Constitution will also take place in Spain, Portugal, Luxembourg, Belgium, Denmark, Ireland, the Netherlands, the Czech Republic, the UK and France.