PUBLIC OPINION IN THE EUROPEAN UNION MALTA http://ec.europa.eu/commfrontoffice/publicopinion This survey has been requested and co-ordinated by the European Commission, Directorate-General for Communication. This report was produced for the European Commission s Representation in.
TABLE OF CONTENTS INTRODUCTION 1 KEY FINDINGS 2 I. PERCEPTIONS ON OWN PERSONAL SITUATION 2 II. PERCEPTIONS ON MALTA 3 III. PERCEPTIONS ON ECONOMIC SITUATION 4 IV. PERCEPTIONS ON EU 4 V. PRIORITIES OF EUROPEAN COMMISSION 6 VI. TRUST IN INSTITUTIONS 8 VII. MEDIA AND SOURCES OF NEWS 9 This national report for the European Commission Representation in was written by MISCO International Limited 1
INTRODUCTION The national report outlines the main findings of Wave 88 of the Standard Eurobarometer. Fieldwork was conducted between the 5th and 12th November 2017. A total of 503 face to face interviews were conducted. In 2017, the Maltese economy has continued to perform well with strong growth in the gross domestic product and in employment. There were two notable events in 2017 that are likely to have had an impact on the responses. A snap general election was held on the 3 rd June 2017 and the Labour Party was returned to power with a majority that was similar to the previous general election. On the 16 October 2017, the investigative Maltese journalist, Daphne Caruana-Galizia, was murdered in a car bomb, attracting widespread local and international reaction. At the time the field work was conducted no one had as yet been charged with her murder. The report covers a number of topics, namely perceptions on the respondents own personal situation, and its economic situation, and the European Union; the priorities of the European Commission; trust in institutions; and media and sources of news KEY FINDINGS This wave of the Eurobarometer has shown once more that respondents in are very positive about the life they lead, the financial situation of their household, the Maltese economy and the employment situation. Respondents have highlighted the issue of crime as the main issue that is facing at the moment. Respondents in also feel very positive about the EU, about s membership of the EU, and what the EU stands for and generally express a more favourable opinion about the EU than respondents in the whole of the 28 Member States. I. PERCEPTIONS ON OWN PERSONAL SITUATION The first part of this report deals with the respondents own perceptions of their personal situation. A number of aspects have been researched, including how satisfied respondents are about their life in general, their personal job situation, the financial situation of their household, their expectations about their life, the financial situation of their household and their personal job situation for the next twelve months, the two most important issues they are facing at the moment, and their quality of life. 95% of respondents in are generally satisfied with the life they lead. This level is marginally higher than that expressed in 2016 and remains one of the highest in the European Union. The relative percentage for the whole of the EU is 83%. 43% expect their life to get better in the coming twelve months, another 40% expect it to remain the same, while 5% expect it to get worse and 12% did not express an opinion. Respondents are also confident about their future. 80% of respondents expressed confidence about their future, compared with 68% for the whole of the EU. Chart 1 below provides information on how respondents in each member state feel about the life they lead 2
Two out three respondents described their personal job situation to be either very good or rather good. Only 6% of respondents expressed a negative opinion on this aspect, while 28% did not express an opinion. 87% described the financial situation of their household as positive, while 11% described it as negative. This generally positive data contrasts sharply with the average for the whole of the EU. The data for the 28 member states shows that 61% describe their personal job situation as positive while 72% describe the financial situation of their household as positive. In terms of expectations 25% of respondents in expect their personal job situation to get better in the coming twelve months and 29% expect their financial situation to get better, 60% expect it to remain the same and 4% expect it to get worse. These levels of expectations are marginally better than the levels experienced in 2016. Respondents were presented with a set of issues and were asked to choose the two most important ones that they are facing at the moment. The issue that received most mentions was rising prices which was mentioned by 22% of respondents. The issue that received the next highest number of mentions was the environment, climate and energy (20%), followed by crime (17%), pensions (16%), health and social security (14%) and immigration (13%). The survey also measured the level of attachment of respondents to the town or village the live in,, the European Union and Europe. Most attachment is felt with with 95% of respondents saying that they feel either very attached or fairly attached to the country. Next comes attachment to the town or village they live with 81% claiming to be very attached or fairly attached. The level of attachment to the European Union is among the highest when compared to other Member States. 66% of respondents in claimed to be very attached or fairly attached to the European Union, compared to an average of 55% for the whole of the EU. The level of attachment to Europe is at 69%. II. PERCEPTIONS ON MALTA Three out four respondents (75%) expressed a positive opinion about the situation in. A similar percentage (74%) expressed a positive judgement about the provision of public services in. 61% of respondents said that in general, things in are going in the right direction, compared to 19% who said that they are going in the wrong direction. 35% expect the situation in to get better, while 13% expect it to get worse and 41% expect it to remain the same. 11% 3
did not express an opinion. In the whole of the EU, 50% of respondents described the situation in their respective country as good and 25% expect it to get better. Respondents were presented with a set of issues and were asked to choose the two most important ones that is facing at the moment. The issue that received most mentions was crime, which was mentioned by 45% of respondents. The issue that received the next highest number of mentions was immigration (32%), followed by the environment, climate and energy (22%), housing (12%), the education system (11%) and rising prices (10%). 58% of respondents in expressed satisfaction with the way democracy works in, while 39% expressed dissatisfaction with the way democracy works. The level of satisfaction among respondents in is slightly higher than the average for the whole of the EU. III. PERCEPTIONS ON ECONOMIC SITUATION The economic situation of is judged to be very positive, with 89% expressing a positive opinion, compared to 60% for the whole of the EU. The employment situation also scores highly with 85% of respondents stating that it is very good or rather good. The relative figure for the whole of the EU is 42%. Chart 2 below provides information about how respondents in each member state judge the current situation of the economy in their respective country. In terms of expectations, 29% of respondents expect the economic situation to get better and 33% expect the employment situation to get better. The percentages of respondents who expect the economy and the employment situation to get worse are rather low, 7% and 5% respectively. IV. PERCEPTIONS ON THE EU A number of questions in this survey gauged perceptions of respondents on the European Union. 64% of respondents in judge the situation of the European economy to be very good or rather good, while 12% judge it to be rather bad or very bad. 24% did not express an opinion. In contrast, 48% of respondents in the whole of the European Union judge the situation of the European economy to be very good or rather good and 39% judge it to be rather bad or very bad. 4
Expectations for the future reveal an optimistic opinion among respondents in about the European economy for the coming twelve months. Only 6% of respondents expect to situation to worsen, compared to 20% for the whole of the European Union. 26% of respondents expect the economic situation in the EU to get better, compared to 22% for the whole of the EU. Respondents were asked to state which they think are the two most important issues facing the EU at the moment. For respondents in, the issue that received most mentions was terrorism, with 56% of respondents mentioning it. Next in line is immigration with 54% of respondents mentioning this item. These two issues were followed by crime (11%). All the other issues were mentioned by less than 10% of respondents. The data for the whole of the EU shows a similar pattern, with 39% of respondents mentioning immigration and 34% of respondents mentioning terrorism. These were followed by economic aspects, namely the economic situation (17%), the state of Member States public finances (16%) and unemployment (13%). For respondents in, things in the European Union are generally going in the right direction, with 38% expressing such a positive opinion, while 16% believe that things are going in the wrong direction. In contrast, in the whole of the EU, 47% believe that things are going in the wrong direction, and 30% believe that things are going in the right direction. For 45% of respondents, the EU conjures up a very positive or fairly positive image, while for 8% it conjures up a fairly negative or very negative image. Chart 3 below provides information on how respondents in each Member State perceive the European Union in general. Respondents were asked to mention the two most positive results of the European Union. 49% mentioned the free movement of people, goods and services within the EU, 47% mentioned the euro, 46% of respondents mentioned peace among the Member States of the EU, and 36% mentioned student exchange programmes such as ERASMUS. 49% of respondents in believe that their voice counts in the EU, while 41% disagree with such a statement. In the 28 Member States as a whole, 44% of respondents believe that their voice counts in the EU and 50% disagree with such a statement. Another aspect covered was whether respondents believe that the interests of are well taken into account in the European Union. 54% of respondents in replied in the affirmative, while the average for the whole of the EU was 49%. In 34% replied in the negative. To the question as to whether faces a better future outside the EU, 14% stated that they agreed with this view, while 77% believe that would not face a better future outside the EU. 5
This latter percentage is the highest among all the 28 Member States, with the exception of The Netherlands. Respondents were given a number of adjectives and were asked to state whether each of these adjectives describes very well, fairly well, fairly badly or very badly the idea they might have of the EU. The results indicate that respondents in have a much more positive perception of the EU than the EU average. Chart 4 below provides the responses achieved. Please tell me for each of the following words if it describes very well, fairly well, fairly badly or very badly the idea you might have of the EU. Very well or fairly well Very well or fairly well Modern 73% 62% Democratic 73% 65% Protective 60% 54% Efficient 53% 40% Remote 40% 53% Forward looking 62% 55% EU Another aspect covered in the survey is what the EU means to respondents personally. For 63% of respondents it is the freedom to travel, study and work anywhere in the EU. Next came the Euro (45%), cultural diversity (42%) and a stronger say in the world (42%). Respondents were asked to rate the speed of building Europe. 9% of respondents in stated that it is rather at a standstill. This compares with 19% for the EU as a whole. Moreover the percentage of respondents who stated that the EU is rather at a standstill is the lowest among all Member States. 70% of respondents in said that Europe is being built at a moderate speed, similar to the whole of the EU. 7% stated that the current speed of building Europe is rather running. This is the highest among all Member States. V. PRIORITIES OF THE EUROPEAN COMMISSION Respondents were asked a set of questions regarding the priorities being promoted by the European Commission. Chart 5 below provides information on the percentage of respondents in and the EU as a whole who stated that they are in favour of selected initiatives. Please tell me for each statement, whether you are for it or against it. A European economic and monetary union with one single currency, the euro European Union 77% 61% A common foreign policy for the 28 Member States of the EU 60% 66% Further enlargement to include countries in future years 62% 42% A common defence and security policy among EU Member 74% 75% 6
States A common European policy on migration 72% 69% A common energy policy among EU Member States 80% 72% A digital single market within the EU 67% 62% The free movement of EU citizens who can live, work, study and do business anywhere in the EU 81% 81% These results indicate that an increased or stable level of support for these initiatives among respondents in, when compared to previous waves of the Eurobarometer. Moreover the only area where there is a marked lower level of support when compared to the whole of the European Union is in the area of a common foreign policy for the 28 Member States of the European Union. An integral part of these priority areas is a set of objectives that the European Commission has set to be reached by 2020. Respondents were asked whether they perceive these objectives to be too ambitious, about right or too modest. Chart 6 below provides information on the percentage of respondents who perceive these challenges to be just about right. The data in general presents a more optimistic view among respondents in than for the EU as a whole, even if this higher level of optimism is not so marked. Thinking about each of the following objectives to be reached by 2020 in the EU, would you say that it is too ambitious, about right or too modest? European Union Three quarters of men and women between 20 and 64 years of age should have a job The share of funds invested in research and development should reach 3% of the wealth produced in the EU each year To reduce EU greenhouse gas emissions by at least 20% by 2020 compared to 1990 To increase the share of renewable energy in the EU by 20% by 2020 58% 58% 58% 54% 55% 50% 60% 55% To increase energy efficiency in the EU by 20% by 2020 61% 56% The number of young people leaving school with no qualifications should fall to 10% At least 40% of the people aged 30 to 34 should have a higher education degree or diploma The number of Europeans living below the poverty line should be reduced by a quarter by 2020 To bring industry's contribution to the economy to 20% of GDP by 2020 51% 52% 44% 45% 52% 48% 51% 50% 7
VI. TRUST IN INSTITUTIONS Respondents were asked whether they tend to trust or not a number of institutions. Respondents displayed a low level of trust in various media as shown in Chart 7 below. The chart provides information on the percentage of respondents who stated that they trust the media and institutions in and the average level of trust in the whole of the EU. For each of the following media and institutions, please tell me if you tend to trust it or tend not to trust it European Union The written press 31% 47% Radio 37% 59% Television 45% 51% The internet 35% 34% Online social networks 21% 20% Political parties 21% 18% Justice / the Legal System 35% 50% The Police 53% 72% The Army 67% 73% Public Administration 51% 49% Regional or Local Public Authorities 52% 51% The Maltese Government 51% 36% The Maltese Parliament 47% 35% The European Union 51% 41% The United Nations 52% 47% The European Parliament 54% 45% The European Commission 51% 42% The European Central Bank 47% 39% VII. MEDIA AND SOURCES OF NEWS Another set of questions was asked about media usage and sources of news. Respondents how often they watch or listen to or read or use various media. Television is by far the medium most used with 80% of respondents saying that watch TV either on a TV set or on internet daily. Next comes internet with 68% of respondents stating that they use internet daily. 58% use online social networks, while 49% listen to the radio and 18% read the written press daily or almost daily. On the basis of the responses received a Media Usage Index was computed. 52% of respondents are described as high media users, 27% are described as medium media users, 17% are described as low media users, while 4% do not make use of any media. Respondents were then asked where they get most of their news on national political matters. Television is the main source of news, mentioned by 72% of respondents. TV is followed by online 8
social networks (45%), websites (42%), the radio (38%) and the written press (14%). Internet sources combined represent the primary source for news on national political matters for 63% of respondents in. This compares with an average of 42% for the whole of the EU and is the second highest among the Member States. When it comes news on European political matters, television is again the main source of news mentioned by 63% of respondents. Websites were mentioned by 42% 0f respondents and online social networks were mentioned by 37% of respondents. The radio was mentioned by 27% of respondents while 13% of respondents mentioned the written press. 14% of respondents in stated that they do not look up for news on European political matters. A Media Trust Index was developed on the basis of the data of this survey. This Index shows that 14% of respondents in have a high level of trust in the media, 33% have a medium level of trust in the media and 53% have a low level of or no trust in the media. 9