European Youth Poll on Saving Measures (Results)

While saving programmes are considered widely unpopular, many young people in Europe think they are necessary. In the latest European Youth Poll taken by the European Youth Parliament, 72% of respondents said they think their country should implement saving programmes to get out of the Debt Crisis.

The survey, which is conducted regularly by the European Youth Parliament in cooperation with Stiftung Mercator, drew a record number of 3566 participants between 16 and 27 from 43 European countries between June 19th and July 2nd 2012. Among the participants have been 65 young Austrians.

However, while young people agree to the necessity of saving, they don’t think this should be the only way to go forward. Instead, 66% spoke out in favour of a European investment programme, and a strong majority of 83% thinks that the negative social effects of the crisis must be addressed as a common European responsibility.

When asking whether young people feel personally affected by the crisis, there is a clear difference between young people from those countries that currently receive EFSF- support and their peers from other countries: 88% of respondents from Portugal, Greece, Spain, Ireland and Cyprus feel personally affected, but only 39% from other Euro countries say the same. Interestingly, young people from the countries receiving support are strongly in favour of saving programmes (78%), while the current austerity programmes as conditions for international support are rather unpopular (41% like them 56% think they should end) among them.

While 57% of respondents think that the Euro area should move towards a complete fiscal and economic union (64% in the Euro area itself), only 38% have trust in Europe’s politicians to find a solution to the crisis.

EYP Austria would like to thank the many contributors in Austria for their time spent on the survey. Extensive material on the survey can be found on the international EYP website eyp.org. For further requests, please contact the Austrian Coordinator for European Youth Polls, Jakob Etzel (jakob.etzel@eypaustria.org).