Poland’s exit poll results may have been well received in several European capitals, with many hailing it as a possible end to the tug-of-war with Brussels should the current opposition form a government, but the charm of former European Council president Donald Tusk may not be all that it seems.
Most foreign media described the possible ousting of the conservative ruling Law and Justice (PiS) government as the wind of democratic change in Polish politics, hoping that Donald Tusk’s Civic Platform (PO), if it returned to power, would put an end to the country’s conflict with the EU and return it to the EU’s mainstream on most matters.
The charm of the former European Council president may prove misleading, though.
“The current opposition’s coming to power does not mean that Warsaw’s position on several key issues would change as dramatically as Brussels may expect,” Sławomir Domaradzki, a political analyst at Warsaw University, told Euractiv.pl.
One issue is migration, as Poland and Hungary were the two countries that fiercely opposed the Commission-proposed migration and asylum reform. PiS has refused to accept asylum seekers, nor has it agreed to contribute financially to managing the financial burden.
‘Is it still Donald Tusk or maybe Donald Trump?’
During the election campaign, the PiS threatened the Polish people that Tusk would succumb to EU pressure and allow thousands of irregular migrants into Poland if he came to power.
“PO basically says ‘yes’ to all the proposals by the EU institutions,” PiS MEP Zdzisław Krasnodębski told Euractiv.pl, adding that he expected the opposition to approve the EU migration pact if it forms a government.
However, Tusk’s party denied this.
“We will certainly not agree to any solutions that would lead to the rising number of migrants in Poland,” PO spokesman Jan Grabiec told Euractiv.pl.
As Poland received millions of war refugees from Ukraine, many of whom have stayed there, it should not be forced to accept even more migrants, he said.
The Polish political scene has a rather unified view on migration, with all the parliamentary parties, from the ultra-conservative Confederation party to the Left, opposing relocations. Still, in recent months, Tusk surprised most of his fellow opposition politicians with his harsh tone on migration.
In July, he posted a video that slammed the conservative Law and Justice (PiS) government for letting in thousands of migrants “from Islamic countries” while opposing the EU relocations scheme as an alleged threat to Poland’s security. “Polish people must regain control over their country and its borders,” the video title said.
Poland must oust the PiS government to deter the threat around the corner, Tusk said, referring to Muslim immigrants coming to Poland.
After publishing the video, he was accused of fuelling racist bias by other opposition parties.
“Is it still Donald Tusk or maybe Donald Trump?” asked Left MP Maciej Konieczny, calling Tusk’s statement “madness.”
Uncertainty on other issues
While Tusk may surprise the EU institutions with his stance on migration, the same can be said of his economic policy, as some unpopular decisions have overshadowed his legacy as prime minister between 2007 and 2014.
When PO was in power with Tusk as prime minister, it raised Poland’s retirement age to 67, while PiS lowered it to 65 for men and 60 for women when it came to power in 2015.
During the election campaign, PiS did indeed take aim at Tusk, arguing that he would raise the retirement age again and sell off most state-owned companies to foreign firms.
Despite Tusk’s charisma and popularity, concerns about his economic policies remain.
Those fears were fuelled by a statement by liberal economist Bogusław Grabowski, whom Tusk appointed to his economic council in 2010 when he was prime minister. In an interview earlier this year, Grabowski called for longer working hours, the privatisation of state-owned energy companies, and for Poland to adopt the euro.
PiS government spokesman Piotr Müller claimed that, if Tusk became head of the government, “he would stand in front of the prime minister’s chancellery with a sign saying ‘Poland for sale’”.
Tusk, however, distanced himself from Grabowski’s “private views”, saying they “have nothing to do with PO’s program”, according to the Polish Press Agency (PAP). He pledged that “we will not raise the retirement age after winning the elections”.
“PiS-linked media will try to convince you that a PO victory in the next election means raising the retirement age. No, it doesn’t. We will not raise the retirement age after winning the elections,” he said.
While Tusk left no doubt about his plans regarding the retirement age, his position on privatisation remains unclear. Asked about it during the pre-election debate, he only pointed to the examples of the PiS government’s selling state companies to foreign giants, including Saudi Aramco.
Euractiv.pl did not get a response from PO politicians on the party’s stance on privatising major state assets and its plans for managing key economic sectors.
(Aleksandra Krzysztoszek | Euractiv.pl)
