Lifted from here.The Spring 2001 edition of Eurobarometer has recently been published, with a special survey on young people's attitudes to the EU. The most stark result is that young people in Britain view the EU as heading towards the creation of a single government for Europe. In effect, a superstate.
The survey questioned 10,000 young people aroung the EU, and 778 in Britain. They were asked 'which of the following best describes what the European Union means to you?' Most of the permitted responses were predictably all intended to be positive propaganda for the European Union, but a few opportunities for criticism crept in,and the results were as follows:
In contrast, traditional Europhile arguments got short shrift from Britain's youth. The argument that 'the EU guarantees lasting peace in Europe' was accepted by just under 10% of respondents. The claim that the EU meant 'securing a better future for young people' found only 62 supporters out of the 778, and even after months of misleading Britain in Europe propaganda, under 20% thought the EU was a way of creating jobs.
- 235 Britons (30%)felt that the European Union did not mean anything to them.
- 200 Britons (25%) felt that the European Union meant 'a European Government'.
- 73 Britons (10%) felt that the European Union was best summed up as 'a lot of bureaucracy - a waste of time and money'.
- 80 Britons (10%) felt that the European Union represented 'a risk to our cultural diversity'.