Mikuláš Dzurinda, a former Slovak prime minister, told the Guardian this morning that the outcome of the Polish election would “boost the centripetal tendencies in the EU”.

Dzurinda, who now heads the Wilfried Martens Centre for European Studies – the official thinktank of the centre-right European People’s Party – also said that the opposition’s strong performance in Poland “will bring new dynamism and encouragement for our EPP family”.