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PwC chief economist Witold Orłowski believes that as Poland has been one of the least affected economies by the finance crisis in Europe, he will be seen in Brussels as someone capable of finding compromises between leaders in the 28-nation bloc.
“It may be expected that Donald Tusk will be a leader that will be able to lead to a compromise between Germany and the majority of other countries, especially those in the euro zone,” Orłowski said.
Stanisław Gomułka, economist at the Business Centre Club and former deputy finance minister, expects Tusk to focus on cooperation with Germany, France and the United Kingdom in economic issues.
After the announcement on Saturday evening that he would be taking over from Herman van Rompuy to lead summits in Brussels and negotiate compromises between national leaders, Donald Tusk said that the EU had to find a way to promote both fiscal discipline and economic growth.
The EU faces a euro zone that recorded zero growth during the second quarter of 2014.
Bohdan Wyżnikiewicz from the Gdansk Institute for Market Economics told Polish Radio that Tusk will also pay attention to the interests of EU member states remaining outside the euro zone and press on the Polish government to prepare Poland to take up the single currency.
“I think that in Brussels the prime minister will come to understand that Poland remaining outside the euro zone is less favorable than joining,” Wyżnikiewicz said.
Ryszard Petru from the Polish Economists Association also believes the PM will become an enthusiast of the euro.
“This will not only speed up our euro zone entry, but it will also bring down the mental barriers that some Polish politicians, including PM Tusk, have had so far,” he said.
When first elected to lead the coalition government in 2007, the centre-right Civic Platform party, that Donald Tusk leads, aimed to join the euro zone by 2012, though the finance crisis made the topic politically toxic in Warsaw.
The appointment of the Polish PM to one of the EU's top posts will also make Poland more credible for investors, according to Monika Kurtek, chief economist at Bank Pocztowy.
“Even if investors react in a negative way to the election of Donald Tusk after he led the Polish government for seven year, it will only be a short-term reaction. Generally, the appointment is positive news and it will increase our country's credibility for investors,” she said. (kw/pg)
Source: PAP