June 22, 2009: the GBM announces the Focus On series of reports on key Balkan issues.

To delve deeper into the issues affecting the Western Balkans, the GBM announces the Focus On series of reports. These in-depth titles spotlight the key aspects of Balkan development: from migration and good governance to living standards and trust in the institutions. Due to the Balkans’ difficult and much-debated path towards EU accession – with talks currently centred on visa liberalisation – Gallup and the EFB are kicking-off the series with Focus On: EU Perceptions. This report shows that not all countries have been scared away by the EU’s hesitation: two countries in the Balkans have actually seen a steep rise in EU support over the past two years. After this first issue, the next report will be a Focus On: Migration. See here for further details.

June 8, 2009: Gallup links up with Euronews for the EU elections

Gallup was at the forefront of Euronews’ "live" reporting of the 2009 European Elections. Throughout the afternoon of "Super Sunday", Gallup Europe’s Communications Director Louis de Schorlemer reported from Lyon on the main issues and breaking news. Later that evening, Gallup Europe Managing Director Robert Manchin joined a distinguished panel for a simultaneous "live" debate in Brussels and Bucharest to analyse what the results meant for Europe.

During his regular broadcasts from Euronews HQ, de Schorlemer focused on a number of issues, ranging from attitudes in the ex-communist member states and women’s representation in European politics to "what voters want" and the expected participation rates across the EU. As the afternoon progressed, he gave updates on voting patterns and first reactions. At the European Parliament’s "Hemisphere", Manchin joined European Commission Vice President Jacques Barrot, Director General of Business Europe Philippe de Buck, ETUC Deputy Secretary General Reiner Hoffmann and, from Bucharest, European Commissioner for Multilingualism Leonard Orban, to debate the consequences of the election results for the EU.

These "live" broadcasts marked a change in style for Euronews, which normally tends to report on recent events from around Europe. The overall feeling was that this type of transmission with analysis and input from Gallup’s research databases could be repeated in the future.

June 4, 2009: Robert Manchin talks to Research World

In the current issue of Research World, Gallup Europe MD Robert Manchin addresses, in the context of the Flash Eurobarometer, the problem of the increasing number of people with a mobile phone and no fixed-line connection. Landline penetration started to become an issue in 2005 in countries such as Finland when only 60% of the population had such access due to the growing popularity of mobiles. Similar issues soon became apparent in eastern European countries. As the European Commission, the client for the Flash Eurobarometer, is looking for a "robust future-proof solution", the problem is in need of urgent resolution. In the article, representatives of other market research institutes question if the EU would be prepared to make heavy use of a methodology (i.e. the use of mobile phones in polling) that is not seen by everyone to be fully tried and tested. Manchin says he feels confident about the use of mobiles after having overseen 34,000 mobile Flash interviews across five countries in 2009. Studies quoted in the article show that response rates are lower with mobiles and that older (over 55) respondents have refused to participate in surveys on such terms. Manchin argues that respondents are “more likely to give up their time” on mobiles and that response rates are actually higher. He is said to be confident about the future, adding that "the way things are going; the dominant mode might become mobile".

For the full article, click here. This article was first published in Research World, the magazine for marketing intelligence & decision making published by ESOMAR. For more details go to www.esomar.org/researchworld

May 29, 2009: Latest FRA survey as seen by the world’s press

The latest EU Agency for Fundamental Rights (FRA) report, focusing on Muslims, was released yesterday. Deutsche Welle highlighted the finding that 31 percent of Muslims in Europe suffered discrimination in the past 12 months. Both the Le Nouvel Observateur and Aljazeera picked up on the fact that most incidents are not reported to the police, because the majority of Muslims believe nothing would be done about it. Lepoint.fr, however, led on most Muslims believing discrimination is because of their ethnic background and not their religion. Click on the media links to read the stories, and here for more details of the report.

May 26, 2009: Eurobarometer survey of French citizens evokes interest across the media

Ahead of the European elections, a Eurobarometer survey of French citizens conducted by Gallup has created a lot of media interest. Le Nouvel Observateur, LCI, Les Echos and Liberation all focused on the French being extremely positive about Europe. A review of the French press by Toute l’Europe.fr is also available. Click on the media links to read the stories, here for the report.

May 8, 2009: intense media interest in the Gallup Coexist Index 2009 - A Global Study of Interfaith Relations.

The BBC reported that “European Muslims have much more loyalty to the countries they live in than is generally believed”, the Economist said “British Muslims are less like their non-Muslim compatriots than adherents of Islam elsewhere, but (they are) British nonetheless”, Al Jazeera reasoned that “Muslims living in European countries feel far more isolated than those living in the US,” while Le Figaro stressed French Muslims loyalty towards France. Click on the media links to read the stories and here for the full report and a press release.

May 6, 2009: FT features Gallup poll data prior to European elections

An FT article that sets the scene ahead of the European parliamentary elections quotes Robert Manchin’s assertion that “climate change is the big loser” with EU voters showing more concern about employment and economic growth. See here for the full article in the FT and to our homepage for more details about Manchin’s recent presentation in Brussels.

April 23, 2009: release of “Western Balkans: How residents view their local authorities” ahead of publication of a more detailed analysis in the autumn.

The brochure "Western Balkans: How residents view their local authorities" shows the results of a collaboration between the Council of European Municipalities and Regions (CEMR), Gallup and the Network of Associations of Local Authorities in South Eastern Europe (NALAS). It summarises findings relevant to local governments in the Western Balkans, collected in the latest wave of the Gallup Balkan Monitor (GBM) survey - a multi-year project undertaken by Gallup and the European Fund for the Balkans (EFB). Amongst other data, this new publication reveals which cities are considered to be the best for starting a business and that almost three-quarters (72%) of people in the Western Balkans are satisfied with their towns. A report with a more detailed analysis of the results is scheduled for publication in the autumn. See here for more details.

April 16, 2009: poll results released on EU citizens’ concerns ahead of the 2009 European Parliament elections

The survey asked EU residents for their opinions on five issues that the EU could address: strengthening the economy, security, climate change, European values and the future of the EU. The interviewees in the 27 member states gave priority to ‘security’ and ‘strengthening the economy’ (73% and 71% of EU residents, respectively, said they are very important issues). In third place was climate change (63%), followed by the future of the EU (50%) and European values (37%). In the case of European values and the future of the EU, 8% and 5% of residents, respectively, could not or would not answer the question.

On the subject of strengthening the European economy, interviewees were asked which of four measures they most supported. Respondents gave most support to ‘seeking guarantees about jobs from companies’ and ‘promoting innovation to boost economic growth’ (for both measures, 59% of residents said this is very important), followed by ‘enabling firms to do business in a truly European market’ (49%) and ‘supporting companies with public funds’ (32%).

EU residents were also asked to choose between various ways of tackling illegal immigration in their country. Enforcing uniform European standards got the most support (39%), followed by strengthening border controls (33%) and the legalisation of long-term illegal immigrants (19%). One in 10 respondents either gave other solutions or did not answer the question.

The survey was conducted in February 2009 for Pleon. Around 16,500 randomly-selected citizens aged 18 and over were interviewed in the 27 EU Member States. Interviews were predominantly carried out via fixed-line telephone, reaching ca. 500 EU citizens in each country (in Germany, France, the UK, Italy, Spain and Portugal, the sample size was 1,000). Parts of the interviews in Austria, Finland, Italy and Portugal were conducted over mobile telephones. To correct for sampling disparities, a post-stratification weighting of the results was implemented, based on key socio-demographic variables.

November 24, 2008: Italians were losing confidence in their economic conditions even before the "credit crunch"

Gallup polls conducted in Italy earlier this year - before the "credit crunch" - showed that 86% of Italians thought that the economy was not good. This was a jump from the two-thirds who felt that way in 2007.

See here for the full report.

November 13, 2008: launch of Balkan-Monitor.eu - the one-stop shop for strategic insights on the Balkans

Gallup completed the latest round of the Balkan Monitor survey results in October and the findings are now available at Balkan-Monitor.eu, an easy-to-use website delivering strategic insights for policymakers and planners. Balkan-Monitor.eu shows exactly what the Western Balkan residents are thinking. A series of analytical reports, developed in tandem with Gallup's partner the European Fund for the Balkans, offer greater understanding into the Balkans' socio-economic, socio-political and multi-cultural dimensions. The site also features an easy-to-use data dashboard and reports will be released on an on-going basis. As users will have the opportunity to request additional services, these activities will ensure that the Balkan-Monitor.eu becomes the website of choice for Balkans watchers. (see here for more details of the Balkan Monitor project).

October 30, 2008: Gallup CEO Jim Clifton writes about the World Poll in "Research World" - ESOMAR's monthly journal.

In the October issue of "Research World", Jim Clifton explains how Gallup's World Poll reveals findings on global migration patterns and job creation. Linking the two, he says there have been major changes in the last 25 years and that people now put the priority on "a good job" rather than love, money, food, shelter or safety. Being able to create and secure good jobs for a region is seen as the "new currency of leadership." Arguing that this desire for good employment is a major driver of migration patterns, Clifton says that this in turn means that cities that maximize innovation and entrepreneurial skills will be the ones to benefit. In the article, he shows how cities can attract talented people (the "brain gain") and defines the critical conditions that need to be fulfilled - from "law and order" to "engaged citizens".

Read the full article here or download a PDF version (1,9 MB).

For details of Gallup's Soul of the City programme, which allows cities to measure and track their political, economic and social well-being based on how residents view their performance in providing healthy living and working conditions, click here.

October 23, 2008: Gallup polls show that the outcome of US election makes a difference to many Europeans.

Gallup Polls conducted throughout Europe show that the outcome of the US presidential election is relevant to their country. In 14 European countries (see below), an average of 14% said that who wins November's election would make a difference. A majority of respondents in 12 of 14 European countries held that view - only Italy and Austria disagreed. Four out of five British citizens (80%) said the new president would make a difference to their country and more than 70% of respondents in Ireland (77%), Norway (73%), and France (71%) agreed.

When Gallup asked respondents throughout Europe whom they would rather see elected president, Barack Obama was the clear favourite in every country polled. At the time these interviews were conducted, an average of 63% of respondents from 14 European countries said they would rather see Obama elected over John McCain (10%).

Do you think who is elected president of the Unites States makes a difference to this country, or not?

	Makes a difference	Does not make a difference	Don't know / Refused
United Kingdom	80%	17%	3%
Ireland	77%	21%	2%
Norway	73%	20%	7%
France	71%	15%	14%
Denmark	69%	27%	4%
Netherlands	69%	27%	4%
Poland	68%	23%	9%
Germany	62%	32%	5%
Finland	57%	40%	3%
Belgium	56%	30%	14%
Sweden	56%	38%	6%
Spain	51%	27%	21%
Italy	41%	33%	26%
Austria	40%	50%	10%

See more here.

October 21, 2008: Robert Manchin talks to 'City Mayors' about Gallup's Soul of the City programme

Robert Manchin recently talked to 'City Mayors' - an "international network of professionals working together to promote strong and prosperous cities as well as good local government" - about Gallup's Soul of the City program.

Manchin explained that only by understanding the needs of their citizens and by providing them with a high quality of life can cities appeal to the 'creative classes'. In an interview with City Mayors editor Tann vom Hove, he discussed the background of the Soul of the City tool and how cities could gain a competitive advantage by using the programme.

See the interview here and go here for more details of the Soul of the City programme.

September 10, 2008: German leadership enjoys high approval

Results from Gallup polls in 141 countries, including EU Member States, G8 members and former Soviet states, show that Germany's leadership is being viewed in a favourable light. Focusing on Germany and France, Germans appear to express more confidence in the leadership of France than they do of their own. Likewise, the French themselves are much more likely to approve of Angela Merkel than they are of President Sarkozy.

See report for more details

August 29, 2008: What Georgians are thinking

Due to the Georgia-Russia conflict, relations between Russia and the West are at a post-Cold War low. Just two months ago, Gallup surveyed the Georgian population and found some surprising results. On the subject of Russia-Georgia relations, the majority (64%) of Georgians said that their country had to have good relations with Russia "by all possible means." Furthermore, they said it was more important for Georgia to have a close relationship with Russia even if it was at the expense of the country's relationship with the US. Only 1% wanted to terminate all relations with Russia, a figure more or less consistent since 2006. Despite this wish to maintain a good relationship with Russia, Georgians consistently rated the job performance of Western leaders (30%-41%) higher than those in neighbouring Russia (18% favourability rating).

See report for more details.

August 22, 2008: Europe shows its disapproval of China

With the Olympic flag being taken down in Beijing, it's interesting to look back on a Gallup survey earlier this year. It showed that in Europe, where there were many demonstrations over China's handling of Tibetan protests, people were more likely to disapprove (34%) than approve (21%) of China's leadership - the only region where this was true. Respondents in 17 of the 25 EU member states surveyed (Malta and Luxembourg were excluded) were more likely to disapprove than approve of the job performance of China's leadership.