Most young Europeans feel marginalised by the crisis, says Eurobarometer poll

Pressiteade

13-05-2016 - 11:55

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More than half of young Europeans aged 16-30 feel marginalised in their own country due to the economic crisis, but few want to move abroad because of it, finds the latest Eurobarometer poll, commissioned by the European Parliament and published on Friday. Nevertheless, for almost all respondents it is important to learn about the EU and how its institutions work.

This Eurobarometer survey, for which 10,294 Europeans aged 16-30 were interviewed in the 28 EU member states between 9 and 25 April 2016, found marked differences among countries on most of the issues addressed.

Feeling excluded due to the crisis

An absolute majority of respondents in 20 countries feel excluded, though there are marked national differences of up to 66 points. Unsurprisingly, the rates are very high in countries worst affected by the crisis. However, in the EU as a whole, few young people (15%) really feel compelled to leave their country because of the crisis; here too, national results are very disparate.

Young Europeans disinclined to go abroad to study or find work

61% of young people in the EU do not want to study, train or work in another EU country, while 32% would like to do so. In fact, across the EU as a whole, 88% of people aged 16 to 30 have never travelled to another EU country to study or work.

Importance of learning about the EU and voting in European elections

90% of respondents feel it is important to learn about the EU and how its institutions work and just over half (51%) say that voting in European elections is the best way to participate effectively in public life in the EU.

Social media "progress for democracy"

Among young Europeans, who are very active on social networks, a relative majority (46%) believe that these networks represent “progress for democracy, because they allow everyone to take part in public debate”. By contrast, 27% believe they represent “a risk for democracy, because of the inappropriate use that may be made of personal data”.

The full Eurobarometer survey can be downloaded at this link.