Majority of Danes oppose joining euro: new poll

(COPENHAGEN) - A majority of Danes are opposed to joining the euro, according to a new survey published Thursday by the Jyllands-Posten newspaper.

Some 45.2 percent of the 906 people questioned by the Ramboell Institute said they wanted to maintain Denmark's opt-out on joining the euro, 43.6 percent said they wanted it lifted and 11.1 percent expressed no opinion.

Denmark was granted the opt-out after it initially rejected the EU's Maastricht Treaty, which laid the foundations for the creation of the single currency, in a June 1992 referendum.

This latest survey, conduct on May 4-6, indicate a drop in support for joining the eurozone among Danes, compared to a January 2009 study that found 49.8 percent wanted to scrap the opt-out and 44.6 percent wanted to keep it.

Denmark last voted on whether to adopt the euro in 2000, when the measure was rejected by 53.2 percent of voters.

Polls conducted since then have given a conflicting picture of attitudes in the Scandinavian country towards the common currency.

Prime Minister Lars Loekke Rasmussen said May 13 on a visit to Brussels he supported Denmark adopting the euro currency, but added he would not call a referendum till a "yes" vote is assured.

"I really want to get rid of these opt-outs...It is my goal, because I want Denmark to become a full member of the EU," he said, while pointing out that the krone already has a fixed exchange rate with the euro.