POLAND IS heading for a political showdown on euro zone entry between the country's arch rival prime minister and president. President Lech Kaczynski said yesterday he was "doubtful" that Poland could achieve the euro zone entry goal of 2012 set by his sworn enemy prime minister Donald Tusk.
The president's remarks came as a new opinion poll showed just one in five Poles favours entry in 2012. More than two-thirds of Poles favour later entry or remaining outside entirely.
"2012 is just a slogan. I think the referendum is obvious, just as one was obvious ahead of our European Union accession," said Mr Kaczynski yesterday. He is understood to be sceptical of but resigned to the single currency.
Mr Tusk's liberal Civic Platform (PO) has the backing of business people who suggest euro zone entry after 2012 will be of economic detriment; PO officials have suggested the economic crisis, particularly in Iceland, shows the dangers of retaining a small currency.
The Kaczynski brothers, meanwhile, have identified the mixed opinions on the euro as a potential vote winner.
Resurrecting arguments used ahead of EU accession, Mr Kaczynski argues that the euro reduces national sovereignty and will lead to widespread price rises.
"There is no need to use misfortunes resulting from the global financial crisis regarding euro adoption," the president said yesterday.
Without the support of Mr Kaczynski's PiS party, Mr Tusk faces an insurmountable barrier to euro zone entry: he needs a two-thirds parliamentary majority to amend the constitution and insert the European Central Bank in place of the Polish central bank as the body responsible for Polish monetary policy.
Sources at the prime minister's office suggest Mr Tusk may accept a later euro zone entry date, 2014 or 2015, in exchange for the promise of opposition support for the change.
A euro referendum next June would be a chance for the two rivals to gather political support before they face off a second time in presidential elections, due the following year.
Such a referendum is not without risk for Mr Tusk because of the far-from-certain 50 per cent turnout required for the poll to be valid.
But some observers suggest the Polish leader has too much to lose by backing out now.