Flash Eurobarometer 418
INTRODUCTION OF THE EURO IN THE
MEMBER STATES THAT HAVE NOT YET
ADOPTED THE COMMON CURRENCY
SUMMARY
Fieldwork:
April 2015
Publication:
May 2015
This survey has been requested by the European Commission, Directorate-General for Economic
and Financial Affairs and co-ordinated by the Directorate-General for Communication.
This document does not represent the point of view of the European Commission.
The interpretations and opinions contained in it are solely those of the authors.
Flash Eurobarometer 418 - TNS Political & Social
Project title
Flash Eurobarometer survey
418- Introduction of the
euro in the Member States
that have not yet adopted
the common currency Spring 2015
(Summary)
Linguistic Version
EN
Catalogue Number
KC-04-15-287-EN-N
ISBN
978-92-79-47699-0
DOI
10.2765/047392
© European Union, 2015
Flash Eurobarometer 418
Introduction of the euro in the Member States that have
not yet adopted the common currency
Conducted by TNS Political & Social at the request of
the European Commission,
Directorate-General for Economic and Financial Affairs
(DG ECFIN)
Survey co-ordinated by the European Commission, DirectorateGeneral for Communication
(DG COMM “Strategy, Corporate Communication Actions and
Eurobarometer” Unit)
FLASH EUROBAROMETER 418
“Introduction of the euro in the Member states that
have not yet adopted the common currency”
TABLE OF CONTENTS
INTRODUCTION ...................................................................................... 3
I.
AWARENESS OF THE EURO ............................................................. 4
II.
INFORMING CITIZENS ABOUT THE EURO ....................................... 6
III. THE EURO: PERCEPTIONS AND SUPPORT FOR ITS INTRODUCTION 8
IV.
CONSEQUENCES OF ADOPTING THE EURO .................................... 11
ANNEXES
Technical specifications
2
FLASH EUROBAROMETER 418
“Introduction of the euro in the Member states that
have not yet adopted the common currency”
INTRODUCTION
As a requirement of EU membership, all Member States must adopt the common
currency, the euro, once they have satisfied the criteria defined in the Maastricht Treaty
on the Functioning of the European Union (this excludes Denmark and the UK, which
have a specific opt-out from these Treaty provisions). There is no fixed timetable for the
introduction of the euro in the Member States that joined in or after 2004, but the Treaty
does require them to join the euro area at an undefined date in the future.
With Lithuania having recently become the 19 th euro area country, Sweden takes its
place in this edition of the survey, joining Bulgaria, Croatia, the Czech Republic,
Hungary, Poland, and Romania.
This survey was carried out by the TNS Political & Social network in the seven Member
States that have not yet joined the euro area and have no specific opt-out between 20
and 22 April 2015. Some 7,022 respondents from different social and demographic
groups were interviewed via telephone in their mother tongue on behalf of the
Directorate-General for Economic and Financial Affairs (DG ECFIN).
The methodology used is that of Eurobarometer surveys as carried out by the
Directorate-General for Communication “Strategy, Corporate Communication Actions and
Eurobarometer” Unit)1.. A technical note on the manner in which interviews were
conducted by the Institutes within the TNS Political & Social network is appended as an
annex to this report. Also included are the interview methods and confidence intervals2.
ABREVIATIONS
BG
Bulgaria
CZ
Czech Republic
HU
Hungary
PL
Poland
RO
Romania
HR
Croatia
SE
Sweden
**************
We would like to take the opportunity to thank all the respondents who have given of
their time to take part in this survey.
Without their active participation, this study would simply not have been possible.
**************
1
http://ec.europa.eu/public_opinion/index_en.htm
The results tables are included in the annex. It should be noted that the total of the percentages in the tables
of this report may exceed 100% when the respondent has the possibility of giving several answers to the
question.
2
3
FLASH EUROBAROMETER 418
“Introduction of the euro in the Member states that
have not yet adopted the common currency”
I. AWARENESS OF THE EURO
- Three out of 10 of respondents say correctly that there are 19 euro area
countries More than three out of 10 (31%) respondents give the correct answer of 19 when asked
how many EU countries have already introduced the euro 3, a result which has been fairly
stable since 2012. The proportion of respondents answering correctly peaked at 32% in
September 2010.
Over half of the respondents (54%, no change) give an incorrect answer: 39% (+3
percentage points since 2014) say that there are 13 euro area countries; 10% (-3pp)
say there are six; and 5% (no change) think there are 28.
Across the seven countries surveyed, the proportion of respondents answering correctly
varies widely, from 42% in Sweden to 24% in Romania. Correct responses remained
relatively static in all seven countries with no more than a two percentage point change
occurring in any country.
3
Q5a According to you, how many EU countries have already introduced the euro?
4
FLASH EUROBAROMETER 418
“Introduction of the euro in the Member states that
have not yet adopted the common currency”
- Less than half of the respondents think that euro banknotes look exactly the
same across all countries Just under half of the respondents (49%, -2 percentage point compared with 2014)
answer correctly that euro banknotes look exactly the same in all countries that use the
euro4. This is the lowest level of correct responses since 2011. There is a corresponding
rise in those answering incorrectly, with 34% (+2pp) saying that euro banknotes have
slightly different designs. A significant proportion of respondents (17%) are unable to
give an answer.
- Just over a third of respondents think that euro coins have partly different
designs from country to country Whilst almost half know that euro banknotes share the same design across the euro
area, only around one third (36%, +1 percentage point since 2014) of respondents
correctly say that euro coins have partly different designs from country to country 5, a
result that has remained broadly stable since 2010.
The range of people correctly saying that euro coins have partly different designs from
country to country ranges from close to half in the Czech Republic (47%) to fewer than
one out of five in Romania (19%).
4
5
Q3 What do you think, which of the following statements is correct?
Q4 And what do you think, which of the following statements is correct?
5
FLASH EUROBAROMETER 418
“Introduction of the euro in the Member states that
have not yet adopted the common currency”
II. INFORMING CITIZENS ABOUT THE EURO
- The proportion of respondents who feel well informed about the euro is higher
than ever before When asked whether they feel well informed about the euro6, a majority of respondents
say that they do not feel well informed: 54% say this, compared with 44% who do feel
well informed. However, the proportion of people who feel well informed is at an all-time
high: 42% felt well informed in 2014, and 37% felt well informed in 2007.
Of those who say they feel well informed, 37% feel rather well informed, while 7% feel
very well informed. In contrast, 44% of people feel not very well informed, and 10% feel
not at all well informed.
Sweden (59% vs. 41%) and the Czech Republic (50% vs. 48%) are the only countries
where at least half of respondents feel well informed about the euro. Elsewhere, a
substantial majority of respondents say they are not well informed about it: Bulgaria
(65% vs. 33%), Hungary (59% vs. 40%), Romania (58% vs. 41%), Poland (55% vs.
43%), and Croatia (53% vs. 46%).
6
Q6: To what extent do you feel informed about the euro?
6
FLASH EUROBAROMETER 418
“Introduction of the euro in the Member states that
have not yet adopted the common currency”
- There has been a decline in the proportion of people who trust
information about the euro from their National Central Bank and
from European institutions –
While over half of the respondents say they would trust information from their National
Central Bank (70%, -6 percentage points compared with 2014), or from European
institutions (53%, -6pp), there has been a notable decline in the level of trust placed in
both7.
Over four out of 10 people would trust information from their government, national or
regional authorities (45%, -2pp), from tax or fiscal administrations (44%, +1pp), or
from consumer associations (42%, no change). Just over a third of respondents would
trust information about the euro from commercial banks (35%, -5pp), from trade unions
and other professional organisations (27%, -2pp), or from journalists (25%, -3pp).
The National Central Bank is the most trusted source of information about the
changeover to the euro in six of the seven countries, the exception being Croatia. The
degree of trust expressed in the central banks ranges from 87% in Sweden to 47% in
Croatia.
When looking at the mediums for receiving information about the euro, seven out of 10
respondents (70%, -1 percentage point compared with 2014) think it would be the most
useful to receive information on television, while just under six out of 10 (58%, -2pp)
think it would be most useful to receive information on the Internet.
In six out of the seven countries, a most people think that television is the most useful
way of receiving information about the euro and the changeover. The Czech Republic is
the one exception where banks are considered the most useful.
7
Q8: For each of the following institutions or groups, please tell me if you would trust information they provide
on the changeover to the euro? (MULTIPLE ANSWERS POSSIBLE)
7
FLASH EUROBAROMETER 418
“Introduction of the euro in the Member states that
have not yet adopted the common currency”
III. THE EURO: PERCEPTIONS AND SUPPORT FOR ITS
INTRODUCTION
- More people think the introduction of the euro in their country would have
negative consequences than did so in 2014 Over four out of 10 people (41%, -3 percentage points compared with 2014) say the
consequences of introducing the euro would be positive for their country: of these 6%
(-1pp) say they would be very positive, and 35% (-2pp) rather positive. This is still some
way above the all-time low recorded in November 2011 and September 2005, when only
38% of respondents thought the euro would have positive consequences. Expectations
peaked in May 2009, when 55% of respondents thought the euro would have positive
consequences8.
Over half of the respondents (53%, +3pp) think that the introduction of the euro would
be negative for their country, with 36% (+1pp) saying it would be rather negative, and
17% (+2pp) expecting it to be very negative.
Romania (54% positive vs. 39% negative) and Hungary (50% positive vs. 44%
negative) are the only two countries where at least half think the euro would have
positive consequences for their country.
8
Q13 Do you think the introduction of the euro would have positive or negative consequences for…?
8
FLASH EUROBAROMETER 418
“Introduction of the euro in the Member states that
have not yet adopted the common currency”
- A relative majority think that the introduction of the euro will have negative
personal consequences Over four out of 10 people (44%, -1 percentage point compared with 2014) say that the
introduction of the euro will have positive personal consequences, with 37% (no change)
saying the consequences will be rather positive, and 7% (-1pp) saying they will be very
positive.
More than half of the respondents in Romania (59%) and Hungary (53%) say the
introduction of the euro will have positive personal consequences, compared to just 30%
of people in the Czech Republic. The proportion of respondents expecting the euro to
have positive personal consequences has increased since 2014 in Bulgaria (42%, +3pp),
and decreased in Romania (59%, -5pp). But in the other five countries, more people
think that the introduction of the euro will have negative personal consequences than
those who don’t.
Consequence of the introduction of the euro at a personal level
9
FLASH EUROBAROMETER 418
“Introduction of the euro in the Member states that
have not yet adopted the common currency”
- People are split almost equally over the issue of whether to introduce the euro
in their country A relative majority of respondents (49%) are in favour of introducing the euro – down
from 52% in 2014. Of these, 12% (-2 percentage points) are very much in favour, and
37% (-1pp) are rather in favour of introducing the euro9.
Close to half of the respondents (48%, +3pp) are against introducing the euro in their
country: of these, 28% (+1pp) say they are rather against introducing the euro, and
20% (+2pp) say they are very much against it.
A majority of people are in favour of introducing the euro in four countries: Romania
(68%), Hungary (60%), Bulgaria (55%) and Croatia (53%). But in the remaining three
countries a majority of people are against the idea: Poland (53% against vs. 44% in
favour), Sweden (66% vs. 32%), and the Czech Republic (70% vs. 29%).
Since 2014, there has been a substantial increase in the level of support for introducing
the euro in the Czech Republic (29%, +13pp), with a slight increase occurring in
Bulgaria (55%, +4pp). But at the same time there were declines in the proportion of
respondents in favour of introducing the currency in Romania (68%, -6pp) and Hungary
(60%, -4pp).
9
Q14 Generally speaking, are you personally more in favour or against the idea of introducing the euro in
(OUR COUNTRY)?
10
FLASH EUROBAROMETER 418
IV.
“Introduction of the euro in the Member states that
have not yet adopted the common currency”
CONSEQUENCES OF ADOPTING THE EURO
- Over half of the respondents think that the impact of euro has been positive in
the countries that have already adopted it A majority of people feel the impact has been positive: 51% take this view, although of
these most (46%) think the impact has been rather positive, with only 5% saying it has
been very positive. Over a third of respondents (36%) think that the impact has been
negative, with 28% saying it has been fairly negative, and 8% very negative.
At individual country level, the data show that in four countries a majority of people
think the impact of the euro has been positive: Hungary (61% positive vs. 26%
negative), Romania (60% vs. 27%), Bulgaria (53% vs. 30%), and Poland (53% vs.
34%).
Consequences of the introduction of the euro in those countries already using the euro
11
FLASH EUROBAROMETER 418
“Introduction of the euro in the Member states that
have not yet adopted the common currency”
- The majority of people think the euro will cause prices to go up When considering the potential consequences of introducing the euro, respondents were
first asked what impact, if any, the euro will have on prices in their country 10. Over six
out of 10 people (63%, -2 percentage points compared with 2014), while a quarter of
respondents (25%, +1pp) say that introducing the euro will help keep prices stable. Only
6% of respondents (+1pp) think the euro will help to reduce prices.
At least a relative majority of people in all seven countries think that introducing the
euro will increase prices, with the proportion who believe this ranging from 73% in the
Czech Republic and 70% in Poland, to 47% in Romania and 53% in Hungary. Roughly a
third of people in Hungary (35%) and Romania (32%) say that the euro will help keep
prices stable.
10
Q16 What impact, if any, do you think the introduction of the euro will have on prices in (OUR COUNTRY)?
12
FLASH EUROBAROMETER 418
“Introduction of the euro in the Member states that
have not yet adopted the common currency”
- Respondents primarily think that having the euro will make it easier to travel
and shop in other euro area countries In terms of the practical consequences of the euro 11, over three quarters of people
(78%, -3 percentage points since 2014) believe that the currency will make it more
convenient for those who travel in other countries that use the euro, while around twothirds think it will make it easier to shop in other countries that use the euro (67%,
-3pp), and to compare prices with other countries that use the euro (65%, +1pp).
Over half of the respondents say that the euro will help them save money by eliminating
currency exchange fees (59%, -4pp), and that it will further strengthen their place in the
EU (52%). Roughly three out of 10 people think the euro will protect their country from
the effects of national crises (31%, -4pp).
Over six out of 10 respondents in all countries think that the euro will make it more
convenient for those who travel in other countries that use the euro: the proportion of
people who say this ranges from 88% in both the Czech Republic and Sweden, to 62% in
Croatia. The proportion of respondents who take this view has declined noticeably since
2014 in Poland (74%, -10pp).
However, in all countries less than half of the respondents believe that joining the euro
will protect their country from international crises, with the proportion who think it will
ranging from 42% in Romania to 16% in Sweden. Respondents in Poland (30%, -5pp)
and Hungary (33%, -4pp) are less likely to expect this than they were in 2014.
11
Q17 Do you think that the euro…? (MULTIPLE ANSWERS POSSIBLE)
13
FLASH EUROBAROMETER 418
“Introduction of the euro in the Member states that
have not yet adopted the common currency”
- While a strong majority of respondents say they will personally manage to
adapt to the new currency, a relative majority thinks that adopting the euro will
mean that their country will lose control over its economic policy Four statements about the potential inconveniences of introducing the euro were read to
the respondents and they were asked to agree or disagree with them12:

Over eight out of 10 respondents (81%) agree that they will personally
manage to adapt to the replacement of their national currency by the
euro while less than a fifth of people (17%) disagree.

Roughly three quarters of respondents (74%, +3 percentage points compared
with 2014) agree that they are concerned about abusive price setting
during the changeover.

Respondents are divided over the idea that adopting the euro will mean that
their country loses part of its identity (48% agree vs. 48% disagree).

Nearly half of people (47%, +5pp) agree that adopting the euro will mean
that their country will lose control over its economic policy. Almost as
many respondents (46%, -7pp) disagree with this, resulting in a stark turnaround
in the results observed in 2014.
Looking at the national results, at least two-thirds of people in all seven countries agree
that they are concerned about abusive price setting during the changeover, ranging from
84% in Bulgaria to 65% in Sweden.
However, at least seven in 10 in each country think that whether they will personally
manage to adapt to the replacement of their national currency by the euro.
12
Q19 Could you tell me for each of the following statements if you agree or disagree…?
14
TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS
FLASH EUROBAROMETER 418
“Introduction of the euro in the Member states that
have not yet adopted the common currency”
FLASH EUROBAROMETER 418
“Introduction of the euro in the Member States that have not yet adopted the
common currency”
TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS
Between the 20th and the 22nd of April 2015, TNS Political & Social, a consortium created between TNS political &
social, TNS UK and TNS opinion, carried out the survey FLASH EUROBAROMETER 418 about the “Introduction of
the euro in the Member States that have not yet adopted the common currency”.
This survey has been requested by the EUROPEAN COMMISSION, Directorate-General for Economic and Financial
Affairs. It is a general public survey co-ordinated by the Directorate-General for Communication (“Strategy,
Corporate Communication Actions and Eurobarometer” Unit). The FLASH EUROBAROMETER 418 covers the
population of the respective nationalities of the European Union Member States that have not yet adopted the
common currency, resident in each of the seven Member States and aged 15 years and over. The survey covers
the national population of citizens as well as the population of citizens of all the European Union Member States
who are resident in these countries and have a sufficient command of the national languages to answer the
questionnaire. All interviews were carried using the TNS e-Call center (our centralized CATI system). In every
country respondents were called both on fixed lines and mobile phones. The basic sample design applied in all
states is multi-stage random (probability). In each household, the respondent was drawn at random following the
"last birthday rule".
TNS has developed its own RDD sample generation capabilities based on using contact telephone numbers from
responders to random probability or random location face to face surveys, such as Eurobarometer, as seed
numbers. The approach works because the seed number identifies a working block of telephone numbers and
reduces the volume of numbers generated that will be ineffective. The seed numbers are stratified by NUTS2
region and urbanisation to approximate a geographically representative sample. From each seed number the
required sample of numbers are generated by randomly replacing the last two digits. The sample is then screened
against business databases in order to exclude as many of these numbers as possible before going into field. This
approach is consistent across all countries.
TS1
FLASH EUROBAROMETER 418
“Introduction of the euro in the Member states that
have not yet adopted the common currency”
Readers are reminded that survey results are estimations, the accuracy of which, everything being equal, rests
upon the sample size and upon the observed percentage. With samples of about 1,000 interviews, the real
percentages vary within the following confidence limits:
Statistical Margins due to the sampling process
(at the 95% level of confidence)
various sample sizes are in rows
various observed results are in columns
5%
10%
15%
20%
25%
30%
35%
40%
45%
50%
95%
90%
85%
80%
75%
70%
65%
60%
55%
50%
N=50
6,0
8,3
9,9
11,1
12,0
12,7
13,2
13,6
13,8
13,9
N=50
N=500
1,9
2,6
3,1
3,5
3,8
4,0
4,2
4,3
4,4
4,4
N=500
N=1000
1,4
1,9
2,2
2,5
2,7
2,8
3,0
3,0
3,1
3,1
N=1000
N=1500
1,1
1,5
1,8
2,0
2,2
2,3
2,4
2,5
2,5
2,5
N=1500
N=2000
1,0
1,3
1,6
1,8
1,9
2,0
2,1
2,1
2,2
2,2
N=2000
N=3000
0,8
1,1
1,3
1,4
1,5
1,6
1,7
1,8
1,8
1,8
N=3000
N=4000
0,7
0,9
1,1
1,2
1,3
1,4
1,5
1,5
1,5
1,5
N=4000
N=5000
0,6
0,8
1,0
1,1
1,2
1,3
1,3
1,4
1,4
1,4
N=5000
N=6000
0,6
0,8
0,9
1,0
1,1
1,2
1,2
1,2
1,3
1,3
N=6000
N=7000
0,5
0,7
0,8
0,9
1,0
1,1
1,1
1,1
1,2
1,2
N=7000
N=7500
0,5
0,7
0,8
0,9
1,0
1,0
1,1
1,1
1,1
1,1
N=7500
N=8000
0,5
0,7
0,8
0,9
0,9
1,0
1,0
1,1
1,1
1,1
N=8000
N=9000
0,5
0,6
0,7
0,8
0,9
0,9
1,0
1,0
1,0
1,0
N=9000
N=10000
0,4
0,6
0,7
0,8
0,8
0,9
0,9
1,0
1,0
1,0
N=10000
N=11000
0,4
0,6
0,7
0,7
0,8
0,9
0,9
0,9
0,9
0,9
N=11000
N=12000
0,4
0,5
0,6
0,7
0,8
0,8
0,9
0,9
0,9
0,9
N=12000
N=13000
0,4
0,5
0,6
0,7
0,7
0,8
0,8
0,8
0,9
0,9
N=13000
N=14000
0,4
0,5
0,6
0,7
0,7
0,8
0,8
0,8
0,8
0,8
N=14000
N=15000
0,3
0,5
0,6
0,6
0,7
0,7
0,8
0,8
0,8
0,8
N=15000
5%
10%
15%
20%
25%
30%
35%
40%
45%
50%
95%
90%
85%
80%
75%
70%
65%
60%
55%
50%
ABBR.
BG
CZ
HR
HU
PL
RO
SE
TOTAL
NMS6+SE
COUNTRIES
INSTITUTES
Bulgaria
Czech Rep.
Croatia
Hungary
Poland
Romania
Sweden
TNS BBSS
TNS Aisa s.r.o
HENDAL
TNS Hoffmann Kft
TNS OBOP
TNS CSOP
TNS SIFO AB
N°
INTERVIEWS
FIELDWORK
DATES
POPULATION
15+
1.005
1.000
1.002
1.006
1.000
1.008
1.001
20/04/2015
20/04/2015
20/04/2015
20/04/2015
20/04/2015
20/04/2015
20/04/2015
22/04/2015
22/04/2015
22/04/2015
22/04/2015
22/04/2015
22/04/2015
22/04/2015
6.537.510
9.012.443
3.749.400
8.320.614
32.413.735
18.246.731
7.791.240
7.022
20/04/2015
22/04/2015
81.110.173
TS2