1. Optimism and trust in the EU are on the rise

The Spring 2017 Standard Eurobarometer has just been published, and it confirms the positive trends about the future and image of the EU which had been released ahead of the European Council in June. The new publication offers five main trends to take away.

A majority of Europeans (56%) are optimistic about the future of the EU (+6 points since Autumn 2016). Some countries record an exceptional performance on this question: in the last six months optimism has raised by 14 points in France, by 13 in Denmark, by 10 in Portugal, by 8 in Finland and in the Netherlands. Moreover, trust in the EU continues to be on the rise and stands at 42% (up from 36% in autumn 2016 and 32% in autumn 2015) and 40% of Europeans have a positive image of the EU (+5 points since autumn 2016) with the number of respondents with a positive image increasing in 24 Member States.

Read also: The Future of the EU: optimism is on the rise

Almost half of Europeans think that the current situation of their national economy is ‘good’ (46%, +5 points since autumn 2016). This proportion has increased significantly in recent years (+20 points since spring 2013; +26 points since spring 2009). These data vary across countries, but increase of the positive opinion about the economy in the last six months is recorded in 22 countries from different regions of Europe: +19 points in Finland; +18 in Portugal; +11 in Hungary and Belgium; +10 in Poland and Sweden; +7 in France, Denmark and Estonia.

60% of respondents in the EU are in favour of a European economic and monetary union with the euro as a single currency (+5 points in one year). When it comes to the euro area, this support is shared by 73% of respondents (+5 points). It has significantly increased in Austria (68%, +6 points since autumn 2016), Cyprus (60%, +8 points), Romania (60%, +5 points) and Italy (58%, +5 points). 80% of respondents or more support the euro in six countries: Slovakia, Germany, Estonia, Ireland, Slovenia and Luxembourg.

68% of Europeans feel they are citizens of the EU: this is the highest level ever reached on this indicator. In the euro area, the same indicator reaches 70% (+2 points since autumn 2016). In six countries, over 80% of respondents say yes when asked if they feel citizens of the EU: Ireland, Germany (82%), Denmark, Finland (81%), Poland and Portugal (80%).

Terrorism has become the issue most cited by citizens cite when it comes to challenges that the EU is currently facing (44%, +12 percentage points since autumn 2016). Immigration, which has been a top concern since spring 2015, is now the second most frequently cited challenge (38%, -7 points). It is well ahead of the economic situation (18%, -2), the state of Member States’ public finances (17%, unchanged) and unemployment (15%,-1). At national level, the main concerns remain unemployment (29%,-2) and immigration (22%,-4) although both are declining.

Related posts:

Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Duis mollis vehicula sem, eget vestibulum tortor maximus a. Nam nec tempor erat. Aliquam erat volutpat. Praesent sit amet odio vel odio…

Mylitene is a terrific town. The official population is about 30,000, but it’s denser, and thus feels bigger, than an equivalent town in the US. The town is the largest on Lesvos, and serves as the…

Una de las cosas principales que debes buscar cuando compras seguidores reales de Instagram son las cuentas que realmente te siguen. Un proveedor real le preguntará quién es su grupo de interés…