Eurobarometer 56.2: Radioactive Waste, Demographic Issues, the Euro, and European Union Enlargement, October-November 2001

This round of Eurobarometer surveys queried respondents on standard Eurobarometer measures, such as how satisfied they were with their present life, whether they attempted to persuade others close to them to share their views on subjects they held strong opinions about, whether they discussed political matters, and how they viewed the need for societal change. Additional questions focused on the respondents' knowledge of and opinions about the European Union (EU), including how well-informed they felt about the EU, what sources of information about the EU they used, and whether their country had benefited from being an EU member. In relation to politics, respondents were asked whether the process of decision-making about select issues should be done by their country alone, the EU or jointly, and whether the EU should develop a constitution and common foreign, defense and security policies. A major focus of the survey included the euro, EU enlargement, radioactive waste, family planning, and Internet usage. A battery of questions was posed to respondents regarding how well-informed they were about the euro, whether replacing national currencies with the euro was a good idea, how comfortable they felt using the euro, and the future effects of the introduction of the euro. Another set of questions sought respondents' opinions on EU enlargement including which countries they favored become EU members and associated criteria for membership, the future effects of enlargement, how well-informed they were about EU enlargement and what sources they sought to obtain information regarding this subject. For the next topic, respondents were asked about how well- informed they were about radioactive waste, what institutions they would trust in their country or in other EU countries to provide information about this subject, production of radioactive waste, waste disposal and the costs for the construction of an underground disposal site, and their knowledge and concerns regarding radioactive waste management in their home countries, the EU, and in countries wishing to join the EU. Family planning was also addressed by the surveys, as respondents were queried about their ideal family size, the number of children they had, how old they were when they had their first child, and how many children they wanted to have. In addition, the survey asked respondents whether they used the Internet, and if so, how often and from what location. Other demographic and background information provided includes age, gender, nationality, marital status, left-right political self-placement, occupation, age when stopped full-time education, household composition, household income, type and size of locality, and region of residence.