7th EHP round: Cultural and political integration

A clear majority of participants support the idea of a common European holiday. On a scale of 0 (no way) to 10 (yes, definitely), participants awarded an average of 6.7 points. The highest score of 10 was given most often. The most important pro-argument cited by participants was the regularity and commitment that a common holiday could bring, while the most important con-argument cited was the difficulty of finding an occasion or historical event that unites all European countries. Participants also gave a wide range of other arguments and thoughts.

There is broad support for the idea of filling history classes in schools across Europe with more common European content. The average score of 7.3 shows that a large majority of participants support this proposal, with votes 8 and 9 being the most frequently mentioned. The argument that national history is always a part of European history and therefore must be taught together was the most frequently mentioned pro-argument of the participants. The most frequently mentioned counter-argument was the critical point that common narratives must emerge organically and should not be artificially constructed.

The most controversial question was about EU enlargement. On average, participants chose a value of 4.6, which shows that most participants are against acceleration for countries with candidate status. It is interesting to see how widely spread and varied the voting results are. While many citizens chose numbers from 0 to 3, indicating opposition to the idea, many people are also in favor, but remain close to neutral at 6 and 7 (5). Two pro-arguments were most frequently mentioned and voted for: the protection of European democracy through the enlargement of the EU and the economic opportunities. On the opposite side, the argument not to soften the accession criteria and requirements was mentioned most often.