Two Out of Three Swedes Want to Remain in the EU, Poll Says
Two out of Three Swedes Want to Remain in the EU, Poll Shows
(Bloomberg) -- A two-thirds majority of Swedes want the country to remain in the European Union, according to a poll published in the aftermath of calls for a referendum on membership by the opposition Sweden Democrats party.
Some 66 percent of those polled said they want to stay in the EU, while only 23 percent want the country to follow Britain’s example and leave, a poll by Novus published in Fokus magazine on Friday showed. Support for a Swexit was found to be strongest among supporters of the nationalist Sweden Democrats, with 60 percent of them wanting the country to leave the EU.
Jimmie Akesson, the leader of the euro-skeptic and anti-immigration movement, spooked the currency markets last week by calling for a referendum on the EU after September’s election. Though his party has been surging in the polls, his desire for a vote enjoys scant backing among Sweden’s established parties.
In a separate development, Swedish Moderate Party leader Ulf Kristersson was reported as wanting to reach an agreement on immigration with the ruling Social Democrats in order to establish a new, long-term policy ahead of the September vote.
To contact the reporter on this story: Rafaela Lindeberg in Stockholm at rlindeberg@bloomberg.net
To contact the editors responsible for this story: Jonas Bergman at jbergman@bloomberg.net, Niklas Magnusson, Nick Rigillo
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