1. Standard Eurobarometer 82 PUBLIC OPINION IN THE EUROPEAN UNION AUTUMN 2014 NATIONAL REPORT IRELAND Representation of the European Commission in Ireland Standard Eurobarometer 82 / Autumn 2014 – TNS Opinion & Social

2. Figure 1 Negative evaluations of the national economy by member state – autumn 2014 (%). only 20% consider economy to be ‘very bad’. This represents a decline of 20 percentage points compared to November 2013. sizeable drop of 64 points on the numbers saying likewise in November 2010. National Report - Ireland

3. Figure 2 Ireland is going in the right direction or the wrong direction 2006-2014 (%). optimism about country’s direction gradually growing. 2013: first time since 2008 that more Irish people professed country was going in the ‘right direction’ compared to those who said it was going in the ‘wrong direction’. Nov 2014: 51% say Ireland is going in the ‘right direction’ – highest number of people expressing this since March 2006. National Report - Ireland

4. Figure 3 Logit model exploring positive and negative evaluations of the Irish economy – autumn 2014. Attitudes towards the EU are partly associated with perceptions of the economy. Those who profess to have a ‘positive’ image of the EU are far more likely to rate the Irish economy as ‘good’ compared to those who do not have a ‘positive’ image of the Union. Other important factors include gender, class, and trust in the Irish government. National Report - Ireland

5. Figure 4 Difficulty in paying your bills during the last twelve months – autumn 2014 (%). Effects of the GFC on people’s daily lives are still very much in evidence. 61% of Irish people say they have difficulty in paying their bills from ‘time to time’ or ‘most of the time’. Ireland ranks fifth highest in the EU on this metric, and significantly above the EU average of 38%. National Report - Ireland

6. Figure 5 Levels of trust in the European Union in Ireland 2003-2014 (%). Nov 2014: trust levels in the EU do appear to be increasing. 37% profess trust in the EU while 47% say they distrust it. Gap of 10 percentage points between trust and distrust represents substantial narrowing over the past twelve months – it was 21 points in November 2013. Highest levels of trust expressed in the EU in Ireland since 2011. National Report - Ireland

7. Figure 6 Images of the EU 2000-2014 (%). a more optimistic view of the EU is resurfacing having taken a hit during the GFC. Nov 2014: 53% say they have a ‘positive’ image of the EU, up 12 points since spring 2014, and 16 points on 2013. Message appears to be that support for EU membership has dropped off over time. However, the dampening of Euro enthusiasm, has been halted for now. National Report - Ireland