United Poland
Solidarna Polska |
|
---|---|
Leader | Zbigniew Ziobro |
Secretary-General | Andrzej Dera |
Founded | 24 March 2012 |
Split from | Law and Justice |
Ideology |
Nationalism Political Catholicism National conservatism Social conservatism Euroscepticism |
Political position | Right-wing |
European affiliation | Movement for a Europe of Liberties and Democracy (2011–15) |
European Parliament group |
European Conservatives and Reformists (2009–2012) Europe of Freedom and Democracy (2012–2014) |
Colours | Red, Blue |
Sejm |
9 / 460
|
Senate |
2 / 100
|
European Parliament |
0 / 51
|
Regional assemblies |
9 / 555
|
Website | |
www |
|
United Poland (Polish: Solidarna Polska, abbreviated to SP, alternatively translated as "Solidarity Poland" or "Solidary Poland") is a right-wing, Catholic-nationalist political party in Poland.
The party is socially conservative. It is opposed to abortion and euthanasia, and supports extending maternity leave to nine months. Its staunch opposition to same-sex marriage was cited as a main reason it left the ECR group in the European Parliament.
Economically the party is calling for government intervention in the economy, especially tax policy. The party has called for a 'fat cat' tax on big companies, including supermarkets, and backs higher taxes on those that earn over 10,000 złotych (€2,400) a month. It opposes the construction of a nuclear power plant in Poland.
The party was founded in 2012 by Law and Justice (PiS) MEP Zbigniew Ziobro, who led the party's conservative Catholic-nationalist faction.
After Ziobro and fellow MEPs Tadeusz Cymański and Jacek Kurski were ejected from PiS for disloyalty on 4 November 2011, Ziobro's supporters within PiS formed a new group in the Sejm. Despite claims that the new group was not attempting to form a new party, the MPs were expelled from Law and Justice.
On 26 December, their MEPs left the European Conservatives and Reformists (ECR) to join the Europe of Freedom and Democracy (EFD) group in opposition to the ECR's more liberal stance on gay marriage, its support for the EU's climate change policy, and its advocacy of cuts to the Common Agricultural Policy.