The European parliamentary elections got under way in the Netherlands and Britain on Thursday, with Geert Wilders, the Dutch anti-immigration politician, vowing to do his utmost to stop Turkey entering the European Union “in a million years”.

Smaller parties are expected to gain seats in the 736-seat chamber from bigger rivals in both countries, the first two nations to vote in pan-European polls that run until Sunday. Voters across the 27-nation bloc are expected to focus on unemployment and economic uncertainty in the poll.