IN BRIEF (Page 8)

Luxembourg

Ballot issue would swell voter ranks

Luxembourgers were to vote on Sunday on extending voting rights to foreigners - a move that would not only be unprecedented in Europe but could expand the electorate of the tiny but cosmopolitan grand duchy by up to 50 percent. The referendum is backed by liberal Prime Minister Xavier Bettel as part of a modernizing agenda that includes lowering the voting age to 16 from 18 and introducing 10-year term limits for ministers, following the 19-year rule of his conservative predecessor Jean-Claude Juncker, now the EU's chief executive.