CVVM analyst: Most citizens want to stay in the European Union

We have been in the European Union for 20 years. How do you think the attitude of Czech citizens has changed during that time?

Attitudes have certainly changed over the course of twenty years. In the first year of our membership in the Union, there was uncertainty and a higher number of citizens who could not comment on our membership was noticeable. Attitudes gradually crystallized and two camps emerged: one camp with unequivocal supporters of EU membership and the other camp of opponents.

Supporters currently prevail. In the Czech Republic, it is estimated that about 25 to 30 percent are unequivocally in favor of EU membership, while the opponents are slightly fewer, making up about 20 percent of the population. These are people who have been dissatisfied for a long time, and if a referendum were held, they would vote to leave.

What is the opinion of the rest of the citizens?

These are people whose attitudes are on the edge and they are changing. They lean to one side or the other depending on various circumstances, which concern, for example, developments in the Czech Republic, decisions of the European Union or global crises. In general, these are people who see both advantages and disadvantages in membership of the Union. Alternatively, they are people who are not interested in politics and do not have a strong attitude towards the Union.

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survey

So can it be said that the majority of Czech citizens do not question our membership in the Union?

It is so. We asked whether the Czech Republic should remain a member of the EU, and the majority, even from the group that is neutral towards the Union, when they had to decide whether the Union was yes or no, answered “yes” (According to the survey, 66 percent believe that the Czech Republic should be a member of the EU, 30 percent of people expressed the opposite opinion – note. ed.).

Which population groups are more and which less satisfied with the Union?

Splitting marks are age, education and standard of living. Satisfaction decreases with increasing age.

Supporters of the EU also include more people with a higher level of education and a higher standard of living. Among the supporters we often find workers in leading positions, and a little more often they are also residents of Prague.

How do attitudes differ in terms of political preferences?

Supporters of the EU more often include people who rank more to the right on the scale of political preferences, they are voters of the current government parties. Among the opponents of the Union are those who are more to the left, they are voters of ANO, SPD and KSČM.

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What bothers the opponents of the European Union?

They cite an increase in bureaucracy, the establishment of unnecessary offices, EU interference in Czech politics, and restrictions on sovereignty as reasons. These people feel that the Union is interfering with things that we could do better ourselves. In the statements of the respondents, it was also stated that the EU is the cause of the departure of qualified people abroad.

Who makes up the group of people who do not have an opinion on the EU?

They are people who are not interested in politics and often do not go to the polls. They are unable to distinguish whether the decisions that affect their lives are at national or European level.

How do economic crises affect people’s satisfaction with the Union? I was surprised that according to the CVVM data, during the economic crisis in 2009, 40 percent of people were satisfied, about 8 percentage points more than before the crisis.

Economic crises have an impact. But it is true that the crisis in 2008 and 2009 did not lead to satisfaction. Probably because this crisis was more related to Greece and other countries. The crisis of 2012 and 2013 had a greater impact, when unemployment was at a record high (in 2012 it was 7.2 percent – note ed.). This has already had a very significant effect on people’s satisfaction with the Union, it has fallen to the lowest level (25 percent) and overall dissatisfaction with the Union significantly dominated.

The migration crisis in 2016 and 2017 also had an impact, when satisfaction with EU membership dropped significantly (25 percent) and the share of unsatisfied prevailed (36 percent).

Was the period when we presided over the EU Council reflected in the citizens’ relationship to the Union?

I think it has an influence, because in such a period the Union is talked about more and the EU is seen more. If the chairmanship is talked about positively, it certainly has an impact on people’s satisfaction.

Since 2017, people who are satisfied with the membership of the Union have prevailed again, in last year’s survey it was 41 percent of the respondents. Does the war in Ukraine reinforce this feeling?

Definitely yes. When we examined in which areas people evaluate EU integration negatively and in which areas positively, defense was an area that people evaluated positively even before the war in Ukraine. According to them, EU membership has a good effect on defense. And of course, its importance has increased with the war in Ukraine.

On the contrary, ecology has a negative influence. People used to evaluate this area positively, but in connection with the Green Deal, negative evaluations began to prevail.

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