Unease at power of Polish twins

Poland: Poland's opposition leaders have warned of the dangers of a concentration of power in the hands of President Lech Kaczynski and his twin brother Jaroslaw, expected to become prime minister in Warsaw today.

Donald Tusk, leader of the liberal Civic Platform (PO), said Jaroslaw Kaczynski's decision to head the Polish government - sworn in by brother Lech - will add to the instability in Polish politics since their Law and Justice Party (PiS) came to power nine months ago.

"Over this period of Law and Justice rule there is a second prime minister, we are about to see the fourth finance minister.

"Replacements of treasury, foreign affairs, national education and agriculture ministers has already been carried out," Mr Tusk said.

Mr Tusk's party colleague Bronislaw Kmorowski, said: "I'm worried that, with Jaroslaw Kaczynski as prime minister, Poland will become more extreme anti-European and xenophobic."

Prime Minister Kazimierz Marcinkiewicz will formally resign this morning from the ruling coalition government with two populist parties, the ultra-Catholic, nationalist League of Polish Families and the populist left-wing farmers' party Self Defence.

Polish newspapers speculated that he was forced out for becoming too independent for PiS leader Jaroslaw Kaczynski, seen as the real political power in Warsaw.

Mr Marcinkiewicz is expected to be offered the chance to run in upcoming local elections for mayor of Warsaw, a position vacated last year when Lech Kaczynski became president of Poland.

Andrzej Lepper, leader of Self Defence party and deputy prime minister, has threatened to walk out of the government after just two months unless the new prime minister gives his party more administration positions and agrees to its social policy demands.

Self Defence is pushing for greater spending on social welfare and on agriculture, even if that means abandoning a budget consolidation process to join the euro by the end of the decade.