Euro election at a glance 29/5/09

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DAY IN A NUTSHELL

Turkey's bid to join the EU has become an election issue - and not just for right-wing parties in Austria and Germany. In the latest twist, French media report that President Nicolas Sarkozy - who opposes offering Turkey full EU membership - has postponed a trip to Sweden, scheduled for 2 June, because Foreign Minister Carl Bildt spoke out in an interview for Le Figaro against closing the door to Ankara. Sweden says the postponement was just "a calendar issue".

DAILY QUOTE

GMC's rap which praises Alan Kelly

"Don't believe all the bull that they feed you/ Look to the bigger picture of the EU./ We want no more bad economic news on the telly/ So who's the man to do it? Alan Kelly!"

(Lyrics from a campaign rap song for Irish Labour Party candidate Alan Kelly, performed by Irish rapper GMC.)

NEWS IN NUMBERS

The German national broadcaster ARD says that in its latest survey, more voters are positive about EU membership than negative - 24% against 20%, with 53% saying it is good and bad in equal measure. But the survey also found that just under half of respondents actually planned to vote.

Swedish Radio meanwhile reports that about half of respondents in two recent polls are unsure who to vote for. <a class="bodl" href="/1/hi/world/europe/8072051.stm">Day at a glance 28 May 09</a>

DAILY PICTURE

The European election is quite a new experience for Bulgaria, which joined the EU in 2007