EU citizens believe that poverty has increased

The economic crisis has deteriorated the economic situation in the EU member states, leading to an increase of poverty, according to the results of a new Eurobarometer survey on social impacts of the crisis, presented by the EU Commission Tuesday.

According to the survey, one European in six reports a constant struggle to pay household bills and three quarters believe that poverty has increased in their country over the past year.

In all Member States, with the exception of Poland, more than half of respondents felt that poverty had strongly or slightly increased in their country in the 12 months prior to the survey. In Cyprus this percentage was 79% and in Greece was 94%.

19% of Cypriots and 29% of Greeks surveyed in May 2010 stated that, on at least one occasion in the past 12 months, their household had had no money to pay ordinary bills, buy food or other daily consumer items. The EU average answered the same was 17%.

Furthermore, a fifth of EU citizens answered that their household was having difficulties in keeping up with household bills and credit commitments at the time of the survey.

When asked about the financial outlook for their old age, in terms of how pension entitlements might change in the future, 25% of Cypriots (28,3% of Greeks) and 27% of EU citizens thought that they would receive lower pension benefits than expected.

About one in six EU citizens in employment – in total – were either not very (12%) or not at all confident (6%) that they would be able to keep their current job in the next 12 months. In Cyprus, and in Greece the figures are 20% and 34,9% respectively.

The survey, carried out in May 2010, marks the halfway mark of the 2010 European Year against poverty and comes after EU leaders agreed on 17 June to lift 20 million Europeans out of poverty and social exclusion over the next decade.