Wed, April06, 2011 23:15:29 |English.news.cn
MADRID, April 6 (Xinhua) -- Unemployment remains the main worry in Spain, an official report published on Wednesday indicates.
A survey by the Center for Sociological Investigation (CIS) shows a total of 81.8 percent of respondents said unemployment was the country's main problem, a slight fall from the end of 2010 when 83.9 percent nominated it but still high.
Speaking on Punto Radio, Employment Minister Valariano Gomez said Wednesday he was confident that March would be the end of rises in unemployment and that things would begin to improve during April. However, the majority of his countrymen clearly do not share the optimism.
The CIS said more than 3.3 million Spaniards were out of work in March, following earlier government figures that said 34,406 people lost their jobs in the month. And more than 50 percent of the jobless believed it would be "difficult" or "impossible" to find a new job, the CIS study said.
Besides unemployment, the overall economic situation in Spain was also a public worry, with 79.5 percent of citizens responding that the current state of the economy was either "bad" or "very bad." Only 18.8 percent believed the economy would improve over the next 12 months.
Spaniards also showed a deep distrust in the country's political leaders, with 67.2 percent considering the political situation "bad" or "very bad;" and 74.1 percent fearing a poorer situation in 2012 when the country holds its general election.
Interestingly, only 5.7 percent of Spaniards were concerned about the threat of terrorism, thanks to the ceasefire called by Basque separatist group ETA and its current incapacity to carry out major attacks in the face of concerted police pressure. Terrorism used to be the principal worry of most Spaniards.
Meanwhile, the government's decision to raise the retirement age from 65 to 67 by 2027 is deeply unpopular, with 79.4 percent against the move, despite Prime Minister Jose Luis Zapatero's assurance that, economically, there was no other alternative. Editor: yan xinhua
A survey by the Center for Sociological Investigation (CIS) shows a total of 81.8 percent of respondents said unemployment was the country's main problem, a slight fall from the end of 2010 when 83.9 percent nominated it but still high.
Speaking on Punto Radio, Employment Minister Valariano Gomez said Wednesday he was confident that March would be the end of rises in unemployment and that things would begin to improve during April. However, the majority of his countrymen clearly do not share the optimism.
The CIS said more than 3.3 million Spaniards were out of work in March, following earlier government figures that said 34,406 people lost their jobs in the month. And more than 50 percent of the jobless believed it would be "difficult" or "impossible" to find a new job, the CIS study said.
Besides unemployment, the overall economic situation in Spain was also a public worry, with 79.5 percent of citizens responding that the current state of the economy was either "bad" or "very bad." Only 18.8 percent believed the economy would improve over the next 12 months.
Spaniards also showed a deep distrust in the country's political leaders, with 67.2 percent considering the political situation "bad" or "very bad;" and 74.1 percent fearing a poorer situation in 2012 when the country holds its general election.
Interestingly, only 5.7 percent of Spaniards were concerned about the threat of terrorism, thanks to the ceasefire called by Basque separatist group ETA and its current incapacity to carry out major attacks in the face of concerted police pressure. Terrorism used to be the principal worry of most Spaniards.
Meanwhile, the government's decision to raise the retirement age from 65 to 67 by 2027 is deeply unpopular, with 79.4 percent against the move, despite Prime Minister Jose Luis Zapatero's assurance that, economically, there was no other alternative. Editor: yan xinhua
Posts
No comments:
Post a Comment