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Eurobarometer

Poll Shows Fears of Recession Gripping Europe

Rising prices for fuel and food and a lousy economic forecast are spreading pessimism in Europe. Germany has long been known for it traditional skepticism, but doubts about the economy and fears of inflation have spread across Europe, according to a new poll.

It's been a long time since there's been such unity on a single issue in the European Union. In the past, when the inflation rate crossed a certain line, the French tended to respond casually and the Brits were at the very least even-tempered, even if the Germans were starting to get antsy.

But the times are a changing, with rising energy prices fueling deep concerns amongst the populous. People have also lost hope that energy prices might soon sink to a more reasonable level. The era of the eternal "Long Boom," as some wrote in the 1990s to describe an age of ever-growing prosperty, appears to be over. And Europeans fear that things will soon get a lot worse than they have been up until now.

The concern that unites the citizens of the European Union is the fear that price rises will continue unabated. According to a new survey released by the European Commission on Tuesday that polled 30,000 people across Europe, one-third describe inflation as the biggest problem their own country faces. Inflation within the euro zone -- the 15-country area that has adopted Europe's common currency, the euro -- grew by a record 3.7 percent in May, far greater than the 2 percent inflation limit the European Central Bank says is essential for ensuring price stability. When the last similar poll was taken in autumn 2007, only one of out four survey respondents expressed concern about inflation, the European Commission said on Tuesday.

Europeans also share a more pessimistic outlook of their economic prospects. A full 46 percent of those surveyed said they believed the economy would worsen during the coming 12 months -- a figure that is almost double what it was just six months ago. People have also lost confidence in job security. Thirty-nine percent of Europeans said they were concerned about their job security and that the situation will likely grow more uncomfortable in the coming months, a 14 percent increase over the responses given in a Eurobarometer poll taken six months ago.

The general economic anxiety has also permeated into the general opinion citizens have about the EU and its institutions. Only 52 percent of those surveyed believe that their country's membership in the European Union is a good thing. That's 6 percentage points less than only six months ago. Germany has seen a 7 percent drop in EU approval, but at 60 percent it is still higher than a number of other EU member states. In Great Britain, only 30 percent hold a positive view of EU membership, and in Lithuania, that figure drops to a meagre 29 percent.

The perception that individual countries benefit from EU membership has also dropped by 4 percent to 54 percent. At the same time, a countertrend is developing: Trust levels in the EU as a whole increased slightly by 2 points to 50 percent. However that could not be said for the EU's institutions. Trust in the European Commission, the EU's executive, fell by 3 percent to 47 percent, and trust in the European Parliament, the only EU institution where all officials are directly elected, fell by 3 percent to 52 percent.

For the first time, the Eurobarometer poll also added questions on the issues of globalization and climate change. Sixty-four percent of EU citizens said they felt the challenges of globalization required a form of "worldwide governance" to ensure there were common rules. But 63 percent said they felt globalization is only profitable for large corporations and not for individuals. Meanwhile, 62 percent also believed that globalization made it easier for people to be open to outside cultures. Reflecting concerns about inflation and surging food prices, 61 percent said that globalization did not help protect people from price increases.

When asked what first came to mind when they heard the word "globalization," the largest number of respondents, 41 percent, said "relocation of some companies to countries where labor is cheaper." A full 48 percent said the EU helps its citizens to benefit from globalization, and 44 percent said it helped to protect its citizens from globalization's negative impacts.

On environmental and social issues, 68 percent said poverty and a lack of food and drinking water were the most serious problems facing the world today. Sixty-two percent cited global warming and climate change. They also expressed a willingness to make sacrifices in order to protect the environment: 74 percent of Eurobarometer respondents said protecting the environment should be a priority, even if it affects economic growth.

In light of Ireland's rejection just over a week ago of the Treaty of Lisbon in a referendum, it is also interesting to note that the Irish have a more positive view of the European Union than every other member state except Romania. Sixty-five percent of Irish say they have a positive image of the union, an approval rating beat only by Bucharest, where 67 percent of respondents held a favorable view. A spokesperson for the EU said the figures showed that the referendum in Ireland clearly failed for reasons other than any lack of support for the union.

In Germany, only 44 percent of respondents gave Europe good marks -- 5 percent fewer than six months ago and well under the EU average of 48 percent.

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