The latest European Parliament Eurobarometer Survey reveals that the COVID-19 crisis has strengthened citizens’ beliefs that the EU is the right place to develop effective solutions to tackle the pandemic.
At the end of 2020, more respondents saw things on the right path at the EU level than in their own country. Furthermore, nearly three out of four respondents (72%) believe the EU Recovery Plan would allow their country’s economy to recover more rapidly from the coronavirus pandemic’s negative effects. Yet the individual outlook remains pessimistic in the face of the continuing pandemic: 53% of respondents believe that the economic situation in their country will be worse in one year’s time than it is now.
Likely driven by these perceived consequences, citizens formulate a new top political priority for the European Parliament: 48% of respondents want the fight against poverty and social inequalities at the top of the agenda.
