Which countries feel they've benefitted from the EU?
The EU has suffered intense doubt. But some countries, such as Ireland, feel that joining benefited them. Image: REUTERS/Katarina Stoltz
Amid the UK's Brexit vote and rising right-wing populism across Europe, euroscepticism has never posed a greater threat to the EU. Despite the turmoil, majorities in most countries feel they have benefited from EU membership. According to the European Parliament, 90 percent of people in Ireland feel their country's decision to join the EU has paid off.
Back in 1973 before joining, Ireland was struggling to find its feet internationally amid strong economic dependence on the United Kingdom. In the years since it became an EU member, Ireland transformed its old antiquated and agriculture-centered economy into a modern one thriving on hi-tech industry. The European Commission has estimated that Ireland’s net gain from EU budgets has amounted to an impressive €44.6 billion since 1976.
Malta and Lithuania are close behind Ireland with 89 and 88 percent of people agreeing that EU membership has paid off for their countries. In Greece and Cyprus, people are far more pessimistic. 48 percent of Greeks and 45 percent of Cypriots feel they have not benefited from EU membership. Italy had the lowest level of agreement with only 39 percent feeling EU membership has paid off.
Don't miss any update on this topic
Create a free account and access your personalized content collection with our latest publications and analyses.
License and Republishing
World Economic Forum articles may be republished in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International Public License, and in accordance with our Terms of Use.
The views expressed in this article are those of the author alone and not the World Economic Forum.
Stay up to date:
Regional Organisations
Related topics:
The Agenda Weekly
A weekly update of the most important issues driving the global agenda
You can unsubscribe at any time using the link in our emails. For more details, review our privacy policy.
More on Geographies in DepthSee all
Spencer Feingold
November 20, 2024