Brussels, 19/11/2001 (Agence Europe) - After his meeting with Commissioner Günter Verheugen in Brussels on Monday, the new Polish Foreign Minister, Wlodzimierz Cimoszewicz, said that the negotiation strategy of the new Polish government aimed to conclude the chapters that are currently being negotiated as quickly as possible (including those on the free circulation of capital and individuals) in order to concentrate on three key chapters from the beginning of next year - regional policy, agriculture and the budget.
Last week, the Polish government announced that its positions on the issue of the purchase of land (free circulation of capital) and Polish workers' access to the EU jobs market (free circulation of individuals) "had changed". Poland will no longer be demanding a transition period for citizens from EU Member States who want to buy industrial sites in Poland. The purchase of agricultural land by EU citizens who are not resident in Poland will be banned for 12 years from the date of accession (rather than the 18 years initially requested). In terms of the free circulation of individuals, Poland may now accept the deal agreed with other candidate countries, with the option that any current Member State that so desires being authorised to restrict Polish workers' access to their labour market for a maximum of 7 years. Commissioner Verheugen welcomed the "flexilibity" and "creativity" displayed by the government "in such a short period of time". He felt that the chances of Poland being included in the first group of new Member States were "greater now than before".