Czechs have the most negative view of the European Union out of all member states, according to a Eurobarometer survey conducted in May and published today. The EU has a positive image among just 35% of Czech respondents, compared to 52% across the EU. The most positive perception of the EU27 was found in Portugal (74%), Sweden (73%) and Ireland (70%). The least positive views, apart from the Czechs, are held by the Greeks (36%) and the Austrians (38%).
The survey shows that more than two-thirds of Europeans (68%) believe that the European Union should play a greater role in protecting its citizens from international crises and security risks, and 90% want member states to be more united. More than three quarters of respondents also believe that the EU needs more resources to face the current challenges.
However, less than half of Czechs (48%) said they would like to see the EU play a more prominent role in protecting its citizens, and a further 30% of Czech respondents would keep it at its current level. The lowest figures were recorded in Poland and Romania (43%). In contrast, respondents in Cyprus (91%), Ireland (83%) and Luxembourg (82%) supported a greater role for the EU.
The survey also asked what the EU should prioritise in order to strengthen its position in the world and respond to current political and economic developments. Defence and security were mentioned by 37% of respondents, while 32% mentioned competitiveness, the economy and industry.
Inflation, rising prices and the cost of living (41%), defence and security (34%), combating poverty and social exclusion (31%), and promoting the economy and job creation (30%) were also among the top issues the European Parliament should prioritise, according to the respondents.
Defence and security is also a priority for Czech citizens at the moment, with 36% mentioning this topic, though this is a drop of five percentage points compared to the latest survey from earlier this year.
Czechs perceive competitiveness, economy and industry as the most important issue (41%), an increase of two percentage points. Czech respondents also think the European Parliament should focus on energy independence, resources and infrastructure (37%) and on food security and agriculture (23%).
A total of 73% of all respondents across the bloc think their country benefits from EU membership, while in the Czech Republic, only 62% of respondents assess the benefits of EU membership positively. On the contrary, Malta (93%), Denmark (90%) and Ireland (90%) rate the benefits of EU membership the highest.
Almost eight in ten Europeans (78%) believe that more projects need to be funded by the EU as a whole rather than by individual member states in order to better invest in key areas. In the Czech Republic, 64% of respondents agreed with this statement, the second lowest figure in the EU, ahead of only Romania (60%). The highest share was in Malta (92%), Ireland (90%) and Sweden (89%).
Almost three quarters of respondents (72%) say that EU measures have an impact on their daily lives, with half considering this impact to be “positive”, 31% “neither particularly positive nor negative” and 18% as “negative”. The Czech Republic is again lowest in this, as just under one-third of respondents (31%) perceive this impact as positive, 39% as neutral and 30% as negative.
The European Parliament’s spring Eurobarometer was conducted in all 27 member states from 5-29 May through a total of 26,410 face-to-face interviews. The results were published just a week before the annual State of the EU address by European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen.
