EUROBAROMETER: LATEST OPINION POLLS SHOW LIKELY LOW TURNOUT FOR EUROPEAN ELECTIONS.

The findings of the latest Eurobarometer opinion polls, published on May 7, show that fewer than half of voters in the 25 EU Member States are likely to cast their vote in next month's European Parliament elections. The first results from the polls, conducted in February and March in both the old and new Member States, suggest EU citizens share a large degree of pessimism about economic developments in the coming year. However, support for the main EU policies - in particular the Euro, the Constitution and the Common Foreign and Security Policy - has generally held up since the Autumn 2003 poll.

The main findings of the poll can be summed up as follows:

- EU citizens show a widespread pessimism about economic prospects for the year to come: 43% of respondents in the EU15 expect a 'worse economic situation' in their country in the coming year, and 52% of respondents in the new Member states expect negative economic changes for their country.

- Belief that the EU is 'a good thing' remains steady at 48% among the EU15. But, for the first time in this enlargement process, the accession countries are less supportive of their EU membership than the current members: only 43% of respondents in the new Member States think EU accession will be a good thing, against 48% in the EU-15.

- Support for the Euro remains steady among both old and new Member States, with 60% of respondents still in...