THE NETHERLANDS: The Dutch people will vote on the EU constitution on June 1st, amid opinion polls showing 42 per cent against the treaty and only 29 per cent in favour.
The referendum will not be binding but Dutch political parties have promised to respect it if the result is clear and the turnout is high.
A founder member of the European Union, the Netherlands has traditionally been enthusiastic about European integration.
Anti-EU sentiment has been on the rise in recent years, however, along with right-wing populist movements such as that led by the late Mr Pim Fortuyn.
Dutch newspapers suggested yesterday that the government scheduled the referendum for June 1st because it wanted voters to decide on the constitution before an EU summit later that month which will focus on the EU budget.
The Dutch contribute more per capita to the EU budget than the citizens of any other member-state and prime minister Mr Jan-Peter Balkenende's centre-right government has been pressing for a tight cap on EU spending.
The Dutch government has imposed big cuts in public spending to comply with the Stability and Growth Pact and has led criticism of the EU's decision to allow France and Germany to break the same rules.
Last Sunday, Spain became the first country to hold a referendum on the European constitution, with more than 76 per cent voting in favour on a turnout of 43 per cent.
France is expected to announce shortly that it will vote on the constitution in May or June and at least seven other countries, including Ireland, will hold referendums.
The Dutch government said yesterday that its campaign would depend mainly on free publicity such as newspaper articles and participation in televised discussions.
It will only launch a paid advertising campaign if the constitution's opponents stage a large-scale campaign.
Mr Geert Wilders, an anti-immigration politician whose popularity grew after the murder of the film-maker Theo Van Gogh last year, is the most prominent opponent of the constitution.
A small group of left-wing parliamentarians have also called for a no vote in protest against what they see as the free-market bias of the constitution.
The Minister for European Affairs, Mr Noel Treacy, said this week that Ireland's referendum on the constitution would take place in the second half of this year.
He promised a strong information campaign and predicted that a lively debate would begin on the treaty within the next few months.
"We cannot be complacent or take anything for granted. We can leave no stone unturned in getting the information out," he said.
Mr Treacy said that the Government would not send a copy of the constitution to every home in the country, remarking that when the Nice Treaty went on sale before Ireland's last EU referendum, only 114 copies were purchased in the entire island.