STA, February 16, 2018 – Slovenians remain among the more optimistic Europeans, according to the national report from the latest Eurobarometer poll released on Friday. The autumn 2017 survey also shows above-average support for EU policies in Slovenia.
Almost two-thirds of Slovenian respondents expressed optimism about the future of the EU, while a third said they were pessimistic.
On average, EU citizens are somewhat less optimistic: out of a total of 28,055 respondents included in the poll, 57% expressed optimism and 37% were pessimistic about the bloc's future.
However, in comparison with the spring Eurobarometer poll, optimism has increased not only in Slovenia (+6 percentage points) but also in the EU as a whole (+1 pp).
Slovenians are also happier with the bloc's economic situation than an average EU citizen: 65% believe the EU's economy is in great shape, while 29% believe the opposite. In comparison, only 48% of all respondents believe the bloc's economy is good and 39% disagree.
The poll regularly checks the support of EU citizens for the common policies and it indicates Slovenians are happier with Brussels than the average European.
Similar to results of the past Eurobarometer polls, Slovenians support all of the policies gauged by the pollsters. Compared to the spring poll, the support of Slovenians for policies has either remained unchanged or increased.
Slovenians are the most supportive of the free flow of persons within the bloc (87%), the monetary union enjoys the support of 85% of Slovenian respondents, and the common defence policy enjoys 81% support.
The feeling of belonging in the EU also seems to be somewhat stronger in Slovenia, as 73% of the respondents expressed it, while the average EU figure reached 70%.
Moreover, 62% of Slovenian respondents said they were aware of their rights as EU citizens, while the EU average was at 54% in the poll, conducted in November.
The optimism among Slovenian respondents seems at odds with the results that suggest Slovenians are more pessimistic than the EU average about their voices being heard in the EU.
52% of Slovenian respondents believe their voice is not heard in the EU (EU average is at 50%), while 42% believe it is heard (44% EU average).
Moreover, 55% of Slovenian respondents said they were poorly informed about EU topics, while 44% believe the opposite. The EU average shows that 42% believe they are well informed and 57% believe they are poorly informed.
Some 38% of the respondents in Slovenia believe that healthcare and social security are the biggest challenges faced by their country, followed by unemployment (28%).
When quizzed about the biggest challenges for the EU, 46% said it was terrorism, while 43% believe it is migrations.
