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| Dutch and UK vote in European Parliament elections | Dutch and UK vote in European Parliament elections |
| (about 5 hours later) | |
| Voters are casting their ballots in the UK and Netherlands - the start of four days of voting in EU-wide European Parliament elections. | |
| Polls opened at 07:30 local time (05:30 GMT) in the Netherlands and 07:00 in the UK. | Polls opened at 07:30 local time (05:30 GMT) in the Netherlands and 07:00 in the UK. |
| There will be no official results anywhere in the EU until 23:00 in Brussels (2100 GMT) on Sunday. | There will be no official results anywhere in the EU until 23:00 in Brussels (2100 GMT) on Sunday. |
| The vote will decide who occupies 751 seats in the parliament. Most of the 28 member states will vote on Sunday. | The vote will decide who occupies 751 seats in the parliament. Most of the 28 member states will vote on Sunday. |
| The vote will affect the lives of the EU's 500 million citizens. The European Parliament has much more power now than it used to have. It is a co-legislator, with the EU government ministers, in most policy areas. | The vote will affect the lives of the EU's 500 million citizens. The European Parliament has much more power now than it used to have. It is a co-legislator, with the EU government ministers, in most policy areas. |
| Voters are also electing local council officials in England and Northern Ireland. It is the final big test of public opinion before the UK's general election next year. | Voters are also electing local council officials in England and Northern Ireland. It is the final big test of public opinion before the UK's general election next year. |
| In the new European Parliament - the EU's only directly elected body - the UK will have 73 seats, the Netherlands 26. | In the new European Parliament - the EU's only directly elected body - the UK will have 73 seats, the Netherlands 26. |
| You can follow full coverage with all the latest updates at bbc.co.uk/vote2014. | You can follow full coverage with all the latest updates at bbc.co.uk/vote2014. |
| The seats are allocated in proportion to a country's population. | The seats are allocated in proportion to a country's population. |
| Results for the local elections will come on Friday in the UK. | Results for the local elections will come on Friday in the UK. |
| The last European elections took place in 2009. | The last European elections took place in 2009. |