Brussels, 27/02/2007 (Agence Europe) - On 26 February, the European Commission presented an interim report, taking stock of the social reality of Europe. This “social stocktaking exercise”, first proposed in the “Citizens' Agenda” communication of 10 May 2006, will be submitted to the European Spring summit for approval. The European Council in June 2006 endorsed the idea, and now the Commission was explaining its methodology, Commission spokesman Johannes Laitenberger told press.
The exercise is to establish the challenges and trends in European society, and also to gauge social well-being, he said. The aim is to paint the picture of European society to come, to produce an image of Europe's social reality. Conclusions will then be drawn at local, regional and European levels, Mr Laitenberger added, stressing the fact that this method is something completely new (“It is unprecedented,” he underlined), which will be based on open debate. To initiate this debate, the Commission has launched a Eurobarometer poll on public attitudes, a specific internet site and a consultation paper prepared by the Commission's Bureau of European Policy Advisers (BEPA), under the leadership of Roger Liddle and Frederic Lerais. The consultation exercise will run until the end of 2007. The Commission will then present a report which will disseminate the information. The Commission wants to be in listening mode, not testing policy. Insofar as appropriate, the results of this exercise may inform forthcoming policy initiatives, such as the review of the Commission's Social Agenda late this year, Mr Laitenberger said.
In their consultation paper, the policy advisers note the major social changes which have confronted European societies: unprecedented unemployment, inter-generational problems resulting from, among other things, the ageing population, poverty which is tending to become more general, family dysfunctionality, the erosion of ties of solidarity which underlay the European social model, particularly as a result of issues relating to the integration of minority communities into our society. However, there are grounds for optimism, they say, highlighting the fact that Europeans enjoy the highest level of life satisfaction in the world, life expectancy has increased, there are more chances of finding a fulfilling job in the knowledge economy, women have become more independent etc. For further information, to read the full BEPA report and to take part in the consultation exercise, go to http: //ec.europa.eu/citizens_agenda/social_reality_stocktaking/index_en.htm
Eurobarometer poll: 86% of citizens are happy with their quality of life
According to the Eurobarometer poll, 86% of EU citizens are relatively satisfied with their personal life and everyday environment (95% of Luxembourg citizens say they are satisfied with their quality of life), 83% with their standard of living, 78% with travel facilities, 77% with medical services and 71% with schools in their local area. 51% consider that their social welfare system provides wide enough coverage. 85% of EU citizens are confident of keeping their job in the coming months. Levels of job satisfaction are relatively high, with 77% feeling their job allows them to use their knowledge and skills and 71% that it requires them to keep learning new things; for two thirds empowerment at work is a reality. 41% of them, however, feel that their work is too demanding and stressful: 34% disagree. The issue which currently concerns them most is unemployment (36%) before the cost of living (35%) and pensions (30%). With regard to pensions, the Danish are the most confident, and the Bulgarians and Germans the most unhappy (25% each), and 32% of French people are not very optimistic. The poll reveals that 97% of Danes, closely followed by the Dutch and Belgians are “happy”. The United Kingdom comes in eighth place (92%), followed by France (90%). The most unhappy are the Hungarians, Romanians and Bulgarians, with only 39% saying they were happy.
This special Eurobarometer survey ( http: //ec.europa.eu/public_opinion/index_en.htm ) was conducted through face to face interviews by TNS Opinion & Social. A total of 26.755 people were interviewed between the 17th of November and the 19th of December 2006. (gb)