Political trust in the EU

In December 2007, the results of a published Eurobarometer survey about the trust of citizens in the EU boosted discussions about the possible consequences of a lack of trust. According to the findings of the survey, the institutions of the EU had suffered a major loss of citizens’ trust within the previous six months – most notably in Germany (–17 per cent), the Netherlands (–16 per cent), the UK (–11 per cent) and Spain (–7 per cent). A decrease within a six-month period could be regarded as a blip. However, this snapshot can be regarded as the continuation of a long-term trend. The European Social Surveys ¹ from 2002 to 2006 highlight that the decline in trust has some longevity. ² A clear distinction also emerges regarding the attitude of Germans separated according to old and new Federal States. East German citizens have no trust in the European Parliament. A gradual decline can also be observed in the UK; however, the base level is considerably higher. While more than half of the respondents had no trust in the institution in 2002 (59.3 per cent), the proportion increased to almost 64 per cent in 2006. The changes in Switzerland and the Netherlands are less acute. Between 2002 and 2004, the proportion of respondents who expressed little or no trust at all in the European Parliament rose from 39.5 percent to 41.6 percent in Switzerland, and from 37.7 percent to 40 per cent in the Netherlands. In 2006, however, trust levels returned to those of 2002. An opposing trend is apparent in Spain. There are more people who have trust in the European Parliament than have little trust or none at all. In addition, the proportion of people who have little or no trust decreased in the observed period (2002–2006) from 36.5 per cent to 32.7 per cent.