Public expectations and EU commitment on energy supply and energy security

Published on July 20, 2016 in Public opinion and EU action on industrial policy, energy supply and security: exploring the expectations gap ⋅ Full size is 1373 × 550 Pixels ⋅ Leave a comment

According to a new Eurobarometer survey of the European Parliament on ‘perceptions and expectations’, around half of EU citizens would like the EU to intervene more in energy supply and security than it does currently. There is significant variation in opinion across Member States. The strongest support for increased EU action was recorded in Cyprus (75%), Spain (68%) and Malta (66%), while the weakest was in the Czech Republic (35%) and Austria (36%). Energy supply and security is one of only two policy areas (together with equal treatment of men and women) in which more citizens rate current EU action as adequate (45%) than as insufficient (37%). Only in some countries is there a gap between citizens’ expectations of EU involvement in energy supply and security, and actual EU involvement in this policy area.