Europeans are on average broadly satisfied with their personal situation, but less satisfied when it comes to the economy, public services and social policies in their country, with large differences between countries. This is one of the key conclusions of the Special Eurobarometer survey on the social climate which was published on 2 February 2010. This report explores Europe’s social climate from three perspectives: personal situation, general situation (including areas such as employment, housing and perceptions of the economic situation) and feelings towards social protection and inclusion (including pensions, unemployment, inequalities and cultural diversity).

On the same date the Commission released its annual Social Situation Report. This annual report takes a closer look at long-term social trends in the EU in order to provide up-to-date, reliable and comprehensive information on the social situation. This year, it focuses on two key issues in public policy: housing (including ownership status and costs), and the possible effects of the recession including results from the Eurobarometer survey on social climate. Both reports should be seen together with other regular Commission analyses in the social field, such as the Employment in Europe report, the annual report on gender equality and the Joint Report on Social Protection and Social Inclusion.

Key findings 

•  There are large differences between countries, with people in the Nordic countries and the Netherlands generally most satisfied with their personal situation.
•  In most European countries, a strong majority of respondents report a relatively high degree of satisfaction with their personal situation. 
• However, respondents are being much less satisfied with matters such as the cost of living, the economic climate and employment. Public opinion is also pessimistic about the coming year, with negative ratings outweighing positive ones in almost all European countries.
• People’s perception of how things have changed over the past five years and the outlook for the year ahead tends to be related to their current level of satisfaction: the most satisfied citizens also expect the biggest improvements; in the countries with the lowest satisfaction levels, people expect things to get worse.
• Europeans express diverse opinions regarding social protection and inclusion. While some countries show considerable satisfaction with the current situation, others indicate strong dissatisfaction, and this is particularly true for the provision of pensions and unemployment benefits. Throughout Europe, negative expectations and evaluations dominate, with a majority of respondents predicting that they expect their satisfaction with the way inequalities and poverty are addressed to decline and that relations between people from different cultural backgrounds will continue to worsen over the coming year.
•  When it comes to public services, Europeans are on average quite dissatisfied with the way their public administrations are run. In every country, apart from Luxembourg and Estonia, Europeans feel that this has worsened over the last five years and expect it to continue to get worse (in all countries except Luxembourg).
•  When asked about specific public policies, Europeans are broadly satisfied with healthcare provision, with people in Belgium, the Netherlands and Luxembourg most satisfied and those in Bulgaria, Greece and Romania least satisfied. Most Europeans felt that healthcare provision had worsened over the last five years, and that it was likely to worsen further in the next year.
•  Europeans were most dissatisfied with the way inequalities and poverty are addressed in their country. Only respondents in Luxembourg and the Netherlands awarded a positive score, while respondents in Latvia and Hungary were the most strongly dissatisfied. In all countries except Malta, Europeans feel that policies in this area have got worse and respondents in all countries expect the situation to worsen in the future. In this context, the current European Year for combating poverty and social exclusion clearly responds to an issue of major public concern.
• Housing. The report shows that Europeans now spend more of their income on housing costs than they did ten years ago, while mortgage debt has increased sharply across the EU. On average, Europeans spend one-fifth of their disposable income on accommodation. Rent and mortgage payments only make up 30% of total housing costs in the EU while the other 70% pays for repairs, maintenance and fuel. Following housing privatisation, most people living in countries from the central and eastern EU Member States own their own homes, and charges for repairs, maintenance and fuel make up around 90% of total housing costs.
• Social impacts of the crisis. While it is still too early to assess the full social impact of the crisis, the report investigates what lessons may be learned from the experience of past recessions. It shows that social expenditure has played a role in protecting those affected during recessions but that the likelihood that an unemployed person will receive income support varies across the EU.

For more information:

Special Eurobarometer survey on the social situation

• Full report
• Summary

European Commission Social Situation Report