Spain May Back EU Constitution in First Referendum (Update1)

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Feb. 18 (Bloomberg) -- Voters in Spain, the first country to hold a referendum on the European Union's constitution, may endorse the treaty, opinion polls show. Their support would boost ``yes'' campaigns in EU nations including France and Britain.

The vote on Feb. 20 is the constitution's ``first litmus test,'' said Marco Incerti, a fellow at the Centre for European Policy Studies in Brussels. ``It's an important referendum, not so much because of Spain, but because of the signal it will send to the other countries where referenda will be held.''

Between 77 percent and 81 percent of voters plan to back the constitution, according to a survey conducted by Ipsos between Feb. 3 and Feb. 5 for daily newspaper Expansion. The paper gave no sample size. A survey by the government's Madrid-based Center for Sociological Research conducted from Jan. 19 to Jan. 24 showed 51.2 percent favor it. That poll, of 2,495 people, had a margin of error of 2 percentage points.

Ten of the 25 EU nations are planning referendums on the constitution. Rejection in any one country may kill the treaty, designed to ease EU decision-making after the bloc added 10 members last year. The constitution creates the posts of a permanent president and foreign minister, strengthens the democratically elected European Parliament and simplifies voting procedures on EU laws.

Bloomberg