93% of Europeans see rising cost of living 'most pressing worry': Poll

By Al Mayadeen English
Source: Agencies
12 Jan 2023 16:14
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A recent poll reveals that in every EU member state, more than seven in ten respondents are worried about the rising cost of living.

People hold signs during a protest against the rising cost of living in Dublin, Ireland, June 18, 2022 (Reuters)

A fresh Eurobarometer survey revealed on Thursday that seven out of ten EU citizens, or 93%, consider the rising cost of living the "most pressing worry," while in Greece this concern is shared by 100% of the public.

Carried out by the Kantar data analytics company for the European Parliament, the survey said that "the rising cost of living is the most pressing worry for 93% of Europeans," indicating that "in every EU Member State, more than seven in ten respondents are worried about the rising cost of living, with peak results in Greece (100%), Cyprus (99%), Italy and Portugal (both 98%)."

According to the survey, as many as 82% of respondents fear poverty and social exclusion, while both climate change and the potential spread of the Ukrainian conflict remain leading worries for 81%.

However, participants expressed high levels of support for the European Union and expect the bloc to continue working on solutions to mitigate the effects of the crises.

It is worth noting that the face-to-face survey was carried out between October 12 and November 7 of last year with 26,431 respondents in all 27 EU member states.

Four in five Europeans say Brussels partly responsible for crisis

A few days ago, a poll conducted by the Századvég Foundation revealed that four in five Europeans believe the European Commission is partly responsible for triggering the energy crisis that swept Europe, for now, more than a year, sources reported on Wednesday.

About 79% of the 38,000 participants in the survey, which was conducted between October 13 to December 7, believe that the Commission had a role in the energy price surge, up from 75% in early 2022.

On the other hand, 21% disapproved that the Commission had a role, in comparison to 25% sampled between January 3 and February 14 of last year.

Of all countries sampled, Croatia and Greece showed to have the highest level of dissatisfaction with Brussel's energy policy, both recording 86%, followed by Germany which stood at 85%.

But Hungary and Denmark recorded the lowest percentage of dissatisfaction among participants, with 65% and 60% respectively.