Year XXXVIII, Number 2, July 2025

Simone Cantarini
Chief editor at Euractiv Italy

The European Union’s approval rate reaches a record high since 1983, with 74 percent of citizens in all member states saying they believe their country has benefited from EU membership. This is according to a new Eurobarometer report by the European Parliament, which looks at a sample of the European population - consisting of 25,000 respondents - between January 9 and February 4, 2025.

In Italy, the figure reaches 67 percent, registering a four-point increase from the June-July 2024 survey. Consistent with the current context, respondents cite the EU’s contribution to peacekeeping and strengthening security (35 percent) as the main reason why membership is considered beneficial.

The survey also shows that 62 percent of respondents would like to see a greater role for the European Parliament, while 66 percent would like to see a stronger Union on the protection front from global threats, with particularly high percentages among young people. Here, too, Italy, with 63 percent shows itself in line with the European trend.

An important figure from the EU Parliament survey concerns the top political priorities indicated by respondents with defense and security (36 percent) and economic and industrial competitiveness (32 percent), a figure that in Italy drops to 31 percent for defense and security while rising to 34 percent for competitiveness. 43 percent of European and Italian respondents believe it is the priority duty of the European Parliament to address inflation, rising prices and the cost of living.

Inflation, price increases and cost of living are the top priority in all age groups, with peaks in Portugal (57 percent), France (56 percent), Slovakia (56 percent), Croatia (54 percent) and Estonia (54 percent). For Italians, the priorities are inflation, price increases and cost of living (in the same percentage as the European average: 43 percent); supporting the economy and creating new jobs (37 percent); defending and securing the European Union; and fighting poverty and social exclusion (both 26 percent).

The Eurobarometer survey also shows that as many as nine out of ten citizens (89 percent) say EU member states should act more united to address current global challenges, a figure that stands at 88 percent in Italy.

According to the survey, moreover, among the values that European citizens would like to see defended by the European Parliament, peace (45 percent), democracy (32 percent) and the protection of human rights in the EU and around the world (22 percent) stand out. As the report points out, the results for this question remain stable, confirming the solid support of citizens for the values and founding principles of the European Union.

Two-thirds of citizens support a stronger role for the European Parliament As historical trends show, in times of crisis, citizens look to the EU for decisive action and concrete solutions. When the Union is perceived as united and effective, indicators of support are high - as is the case now. Fifty percent of respondents have a positive opinion of the EU. In the past decade, this positive perception has been higher only once (at 52 percent), in spring 2022, immediately after the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

The positive image of the European Parliament remains high and stable (41 percent for the European average, 46 percent in Italy). With only a few months to go before the start of the legislature, more than six in ten citizens (62 percent) would like the European Parliament to have a greater role, up six percentage points from February-March 2024, just before the June European elections. In Italy, 67 percent of citizens who responded to the survey want it, up 11 points from June/July 2024.

«Two-thirds of Europeans want the EU to play a greater role in their protection», EU Parliament President Roberta Metsola stressed in a note. “This is a clear call to action, to which we will respond. Europe must be stronger so that our citizens feel safer. The European Parliament will ensure that any proposal is bold and ambitious enough to address the seriousness of the threats facing Europe. Europe must stand up today, or risk being trampled tomorrow,” he said.

The survey was conducted between January 9 and February 4, 2025 in all 27 EU member states. Interviews were conducted in person, with video interviews added in the Czech Republic, Denmark, Finland, Malta, the Netherlands, and Sweden. A total of 26,354 interviews were conducted. Overall results are weighted based on the population of each country.