Amsterdam - The Netherlands will announce the results of their European Parliament elections on Thursday, three days before voting ends across the European Union, Internal Affairs ministry spokesman Frank Wassenaar confirmed Wednesday.

Wassenaar told the German Press Agency dpa that the Dutch would ignore a request from the European Commission, the EU executive, not to release any election results before voting has ended in the entire bloc, on Sunday night.

"It is too late to change our policy at this stage," Wassenaar told dpa.

According to EU rules, no country is allowed to release its election results early, to avoid influencing the voting process in other member states.

But in the Netherlands, the ballot boxes open and close on Thursday, days before polling stations open in many other EU countries. The votes will then be counted publicly, as prescribed by Dutch election legislation.

Britain is the only other country where voting takes place on Thursday, but unlike the Netherlands it has vowed to withhold its results until Sunday evening.

Wassenaar said the same problem had occurred during the last European parliament elections, in 2004.

He said he could not tell whether The Hague and Brussels would re-open talks on the issue after the elections have taken place.

"All I know is that at this point, the Dutch will not change their policy," he said.

Holland maintains that EU rules prohibit the early publication of official results, not of preliminary results. (dpa)