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Daily Press Summary First poll featuring new German anti-euro party puts them on 3%; Merkel proposes EU-funded early retirement schemes for high youth unemployment euro countriesAn INSA poll for Bild has the new anti-euro Alternative für Deutschland (AfD) party on 3%, level with the Pirate party. Angela Merkel’s CDU/CSU still leads on 39%, followed by the SPD on 26%, the Greens on 15%, Die Linke on 6% and the FDP on 5%. Der Spiegel reports that following the party’s inaugural conference on Sunday, a host of senior CDU, SPD and FDP politicians have publicly criticised AfD’s proposal for an orderly break-up of the eurozone. Meanwhile, FAZ reports that German Chancellor Angela Merkel has proposed that the eurozone states most plagued by high youth unemployment could introduce temporary early retirement schemes funded by the EU and modelled on an earlier German programme. On his Rzeczpospolita blog, Open Europe’s Pawel Swidlicki argues that while it is unlikely that AfD will reach the minimum 5% required to win seats in the Bundestag in September’s elections, in the longer term, the party could tap into the much larger pool of voters unhappy with Germany’s euro membership, particularly if the German government concedes ground on issues such as Eurobonds or ECB independence. Bild Süddeutsche FAZ FAZ 2 Spiegel Rzeczpospolita: Swidlicki Welt: Krauel FAZ A video summary of the debate, ‘EU Police and Criminal Justice Measures: Better off in or out?’, jointly organised by Open Europe and the European Parliament’s Office in the UK, is now available on our website.  Open Europe Videos Large depositors in Cyprus could lose up to €8.3 billionAccording to a leaked European Commission document, large depositors in Cyprus could lose up to €8.3 billion as part of the bank restructuring and bailout deal. Separately, Cypriot President Nicos Anastasiades said yesterday that he is “saddened” that some EU countries had been trying to attract financial services away from Cyprus to their own economies since the bailout. The Cyprus Mail reports that Anastasiades has also sent a reply to ECB President Mario Draghi’s warning not to fire Cypriot Central Bank Governor Panicos Demetriades. Reuters El País Cyprus Mail City AM Cyprus Mail 2 Cyprus Mail 3 MNI New Swedish think-tank promoting a slimmed-down EU launchesA new Swedish think-tank promoting EU reform will today hold its inaugural meeting. The think-tank is backed by a cross-section of prominent people from business, media and academia, including Michael Sohlman, Executive Director of the Nobel Foundation, Lars Wohlin, former head of the Swedish Central Bank, and businessman Sven Hagströmer. It will promote ideas for “a free and open Europe in which citizens can choose where to live, work and study” based on “trade and economic cooperation”, while rejecting “more supranational decisions and the creation of an EU-state.” Forum för EU-debatt Europaportalen Greek Finance Minister Yannis Stournaras confirmed yesterday that 15,000 civil servants will be laid off before the end of 2014, but added, “The same number of new people will be recruited in their place.” Separately, Kathimerini reports that Greece has increased its absorption rate for EU structural funds for the current budget period to 57%, above the EU average of 49%.Kathimerini Kathimerini 2 Kathimerini 3 Kathimerini 4 WSJ In an interview with the FT, Dr Fatih Birol, International Energy Agency chief economist, said it was “extremely important” that MEPs vote today to delay the issuing of some new permits under the EU’s Emissions Trading System, in order to prop up the carbon price.IHT EUobserver FT Bloomberg It has been confirmed that the first ballot for the election of the new Italian President will take place on Thursday morning, but Silvio Berlusconi’s and Pier Luigi Bersani’s parties are still far from agreeing on any concrete names. Open Europe’s Vincenzo Scarpetta is quoted by Christian Science Monitor discussing Italy’s political situation. La Stampa Repubblica Christian Science Monitor In a joint interview with Welt, FAZ, and Kurier, Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán said, “In times of crisis, Brussels should pay attention to guaranteeing the necessary respect and tolerance for nation states, and be flexible rather than doctrinaire towards the structure of different [national] models.”  Welt FAZ Kurier Reuters reports that Austria and Luxembourg have pledged to work together in negotiations with EU partners on tax evasion, but without abolishing traditional banking secrecy for domestic savers.Reuters The overall deficit of Spanish regions stood at 0.12% of GDP at the end of February, reportsCinco Días. The target for 2013 is fixed at 0.7% of GDP.Cinco Días EUobserver reports that EU Budget Commissioner Janusz Lewandowski yesterday warned MEPs that without securing the additional €11.2 billion to supplement the 2012 and 2013 annual budgets, the Commission would have to halt its multi-billion euro payments from its regional development subsidies due to “cashflow problems”. EUobserver Chuka Umunna, Labour’s Shadow Business Secretary, has said, “It would be lunacy for the UK to go alone [to introduce a financial transactions tax] because there would be a flight of business to other jurisdictions. It’s all well and good for Germany and France, but they don’t have a global financial sector we have here.”Open Europe research Times City AM EU Home Affairs Commissioner Cecilia Malmström has criticised 21 member states for delays in the transposition of the new EU directive on human trafficking, which was adopted in March 2011.EurActiv Welt BNR reports that, in spite of the EU ban that came into effect last year, battery cages for egg-laying hens are still being widely used across the EU. They are being imported from outside of Europe – which is legal under WTO rules.BNR In the wake of the scandal involving France’s former Budget Minister Jérôme Cahuzac, who admitted to hiding around €600,000 in a Swiss bank account, the private wealth and assets of all members of the French government were published online yesterday.Independent Guardian Le Figaro FAZ Süddeutsche