A recent poll looked at public attitudes across western Europe to key services covering crime, education, the environment and community cohesion. Michael Burton looks at the results
The phrase 'Anglo-Saxon economies', as used in west European countries such as France and Germany, where growth tends to be sluggish, is a term inferring anything from 'unregulated, free market, low-wage globalism' to 'low public service investment'.
In practice, such a description is a stereotype. Although Britain's labour market is less regulated than those in the EU, the country still has a free health service, a minimum wage, and a plethora of employment protection rules.
But, is the public aware of these national differences? And how do the British view their own public services?
A study by Ipsos MORI recently looked at how the public in west Europe and the US viewed their respective government's policy and performance regarding economic and social issues.
The survey found, for example, that concern about unemployment was low in Britain but high in Germany. However, crime topped the list of concerns for the British, which is a worry for ministers as perceptions of crime and safety are important considerations for people's views of their local areas.
Healthcare and immigration are also issues. Indeed, the British have a low opinion of their government's ability to promote the integration of immigration, with just 25% saying they are confident, compared with 45% in Spain.
Just under one-third of the British named education as a worrying national concern - above France, Germany, Spain and Italy, but below the US.
However, the British also felt their education service was good. We also have higher concerns about the environment than other EU states. But on poverty and social inequality, the British appear unperturbed, with only 22% naming it a cause for concern compared with 39% in Germany and 38% in France. And the British also tend to regard laziness as a cause of poverty, with 23% naming it as such, topped only by Portugal at 29%. Only 12% of Spaniards and 14% of Germans thought the same. The British also take a dim view of the idea that the Government should reduce differences in income levels, with only 15% saying it should, the lowest percentage except for Denmark, with 10%. The highest are in Greece - 54% think income differences should be reduced - and France (49%).
And on satisfaction with life, the British tend to come out quite well, with 49% saying life will get better in the next year, compared with only 21% in gloomy Germany and 39% in even-less gloomy France. w
A new British model? Ratings of economic and public policy. Ipsos MORI International Social Trends Monitor by Bobby Duffy and Rea Robey. Bobby.duffy@ipsos-mori.com 0207 347 3000