site.btaEurobarometer: Majority of Bulgarians Not in Favour of Euro Adoption, Expect Negative Consequences

A new Eurobarometer poll gauged public attitudes to the introduction of the euro in the EU Member States not yet having adopted the common currency. It found that more than half of Bulgarians feel informed about the euro and significantly less are in favour of the single currency's adoption. Across all countries, except Bulgaria, at least a slim majority of respondents think the euro has had positive consequences for the countries already using it. This figure ranges from 46% in Bulgaria to 72% in Hungary.

The poll found that 80% of Bulgarians have already used euro banknotes or coins (slightly down from 83% for all respondents) and 20% have not.

A total of 54% of Bulgarians feel informed about the euro and 46% feel uninformed. The like rates among all respondents are 53% and 46%, and 1% don't know. 

Asked whether they think the introduction of the euro would have positive or negative consequences for Bulgaria, 35% say they expect positive, 60% expect negative and 5% don’t know (against 55%, 41% and 4% among all respondents).

To the question if they are personally more in favour or against the adoption of the euro, 44% of Bulgarians are "for", 54% are "against" and 2% don’t know (against 60%, 38% and 2% among all respondents).

Eighty percent of Bulgarians believe that they personally will manage to adapt to the replacement of the Bulgarian lev by the euro, while 18% believe they won't manage and 2% don’t know (against 87%, 12%, 2% among all respondents). 

As much as 70% of Bulgarians are concerned about abusive price setting during the changeover, while 23% are not concerned and 2% don't know.  

Overall, more than half of respondents (56%) believe that introducing the euro will increase prices. A majority share this view in all countries except Hungary and Romania. The highest proportions are observed in Croatia (81%), Bulgaria (67%), and Czechia (63%).

Just over half of Bulgarians (52%) agree that adopting the euro will mean that Bulgaria will lose control over its economic policy. 41% disagree with that statement and 6% don’t know. The distribution of answers among all respondents is 41%-55%-4%.

Also, 60% of Bulgarians agree that adopting the euro will mean that Bulgaria will lose a part of its identity. Thirty-eight per cent disagree with that and 2% don’t know. The distribution of answers among all respondents is 43%-56%-2%.

Asked whether Bulgaria is ready to introduce the euro, 23% say it is, 71% say it is not and 6% don’t know. The distribution of answers among all respondents is 28%-67%-5%.

This survey is the 24th in a series which began in 2004 and has helped the European Commission to track opinion, levels of knowledge and familiarity with the single currency among citizens regarding the future introduction of the common currency in their country, says the European Commission. The summary looks at: levels of knowledge about and experience of the euro among citizens in the seven countries covered by the survey; citizens’ feelings about how well they have been informed about the euro and their preferred information channels for learning more about it; citizens’ perceptions of, and support for the single currency; and their expectations about the adoption of the euro both for themselves and for their country, and any potential positive or negative consequences they imagine.

As far as the information channels are concerned, the poll found that the national central banks (NCBs) remain the most trusted source of information regarding the changeover to the euro, mentioned by about seven in ten overall (69%). Trust in NCBs remains lowest in Poland (51%) and Croatia (56%), while it is highest in Sweden (92%) and Czechia (88%). European institutions are the second most trusted source of information, mentioned by about two thirds of respondents overall (64%). More than half of respondents trust the European institutions across all countries, except in Bulgaria (42%) and Hungary (47%). The highest levels of trust are seen among respondents in Romania (76%), followed by Sweden (71%).