The impact of the coronavirus pandemic, both in their personal lives and in their financial situation, is increasingly being felt by EU citizens, according to a new Eurobarometer survey (by the European Parliament, data collection: March – April 2021) , as stated in the relevant announcement.

Eight out of ten respondents say they are aware of how the EU is dealing with the effects of the pandemic, and the EP Eurobarometer for Spring 2021 generally shows strong support for the European Union, as well as a broad consensus that global challenges such as Covid-19 pandemic, are best treated when treated at a European level.

At the end of the first quarter of 2021, 31% of Europeans have already seen their financial situation negatively affected during the pandemic. This percentage stands at 50% for Greece. A further 26% expect to be impacted in the future – the number stands at 30% in Greece. The total of 57% who responded in this way represent the majority of citizens at EU level, but the respondents in Greece have a clearly more negative picture, with the percentage amounting to 80%.

Despite the economic impact of the pandemic, the majority of respondents (58%) believe that the health benefits of the restrictive measures in their country outweigh the economic damage they may have caused. 55% of the citizens in Greece seem to agree with this statement. Citizens in most EU countries are of the same opinion, suggesting a change in attitudes compared to the second half of 2020, when a small majority of citizens felt that the economic damage was more significant, according to an EP survey.

77% of respondents in Greece (74% in the EU) want the EU to have more responsibilities in dealing with crises such as the Covid-19 pandemic, including a 29% who “completely agree” with the idea (28% in the EU).