Neekamp op kop in Denemarken (en)

Prime Minister Anders Fogh Rasmussen is reluctant to officially cancel a planned referendum on the EU Constitution, scheduled for 27 September.

But his chances of winning such a poll seem to have dropped significantly.

According to a fresh opinion poll from Greens Analyseinstitut, published in Danish business daily Borsen on Friday (3 June), 39.5 per cent of Danes would reject the Constitution.

This is the first survey conducted after the French no-vote on 29 May and it shows support for the No side has gone up by 50 per cent in Denmark compared to previous surveys.

Only one in three Danes (30.8 per cent) would now approve the Constitution, while 29.7 per cent were undecided.

Despite the critical attitude towards the Constitution, a clear majority of two thirds (65.3%) would still prefer to be able to express their opinion in a referendum.

There also appears to be a change in attitude in Norway towards EU membership.

According to a new opinion poll conducted on behalf of Norway's largest newspaper Verdens Gang, one third (35.5 per cent) of Norwegians are in favour of joining the EU, while 44.9 per cent said they were opposed to the idea of membership.

The poll was conducted on 31 May - after the French but before the Dutch referendum - and showed that 24.3 per cent had gone from a yes to 'don't know' or 'no' since the previous poll.

"Many yes-people have changed their minds," said Knut Weberg from InFact, the research institute that conducted the poll.

But the influence of the French referendum is still fresh and it could decrease in the long run, Mr Weberg added.