Bertelsmann Stiftung: What Millennials Think about the Future of the EU and the Euro

14 December 2016

Authors analyse public opinion data for the EU28’s millennials and draw lessons for policymakers, revealing that the millennials’ investment in Europe stands on thin ice for at least three reasons.

The Brexit referendum in June 2016 demonstrated that young voters are significantly more pro-European than voters from older generations. The difference between the old and the young in support for the European Union holds across all 28 member states. Yet our analysis also reveals that the millennials’ investment in Europe stands on thin ice for at least three reasons:

• Pro-European sentiments among Europe’s young generation will not easily translate into votes.
• Old millennials, who have just started their careers, are disenchanted with the euro. Their support for the euro is considerably lower than for the EU.
• And millennials are unlikely to drive reforms. On average young people in Europe seem to be much less worried about economic difficulties than their older peers.

For these reasons young Europeans may not in fact be the strong and reliable base that policymakers might have hoped for. Encouraging millennials to learn more about the EU and to acknowledge the need for economic adjustment will call for a great effort in terms of targeting and communication. Yet if policymakers present convincing and consistent plans for the future of the Eurozone and the EU, they will be able to tap into the strong pro-European sentiment of the millennials.

Full report

© Bertelsmann Stiftung