STRASBOURG (Sputnik), Daria Chernyshova – Iceland submitted an application to the European Union in 2009, but in 2013 the coalition government of the Progressive and Independence parties decided not to pursue the bid. The Icelandic opposition party put forward a resolution calling for a national referendum on the country's bid to join the bloc.
"The opposition parties have put forward a motion to the parliament asking for a referendum in late September, but it will not go through the parliament because the governing party has a majority in the parliament," Gardarsson said.
He stressed that the country was still waiting for a response from Brussels but did not currently consider itself an applicant country.
On March 12, the Icelandic government dropped the country's application, triggering a protest of over 8,000 people in the country's capital.
According to a poll by the local Frettabladid newspaper, 44 percent of respondents strongly opposed the government decision, while 19 percent said they were "rather" against it.
