On May 1, 2022, 18 years have passed since Poland joined the European Union. According to the report of the Polish Economic Institute (PIE) “The Generation of the European Union”, at that time, Polish GDP per capita grew in real terms by 85%. Thanks to the accession, the average annual economic growth was higher by 1.04%, the inflow of foreign direct investment by 4.07%, and the value of exports by 3.2%.

The vast majority of Poles see the benefits of belonging to the EU. 80% of them appreciate the economic benefits of EU membership, 82% can see an improvement in the labour market, and 79% claim that joining the EU has improved their standard of living. 60% of people aged 18-29 define themselves as Europeans, and 61% declare readiness to defend the country in the event of war. Almost 28% of young Poles also declare readiness to emigrate in the event of Polexit.

“The way of perceiving the world by the iGen generation, born between 1995 and 2012, is fundamentally different from previous generations. This is clearly visible in the attitude to issues such as the quality of the environment, emphasis on psychological comfort or the attitude to social inequalities, which are a priority for iGen representatives”, says Krzysztof Kutwa, an analyst of the Polish Economic Institute and author of the report.

Two-thirds of iGen generation believe that wealth and income are unequally distributed in society. Most believe that legislation and direct government intervention could significantly bridge these gaps. At the same time, in terms of European integration, young people are slightly more Eurosceptic, adds Krzysztof Kutwa.

PIE research shows that 27.8% of young people aged 18-29 would have left Poland if it had left the European Union. At the same time, according to 53.9% of young people, the current level of integration is appropriate. The same opinion is shared by 46.9% of representatives of older generations. 31.5% of the iGen generation are in favour of an even larger unification of the member states, while 37.6% of older generations share the same opinion. In contrast, nearly one in seven, both the young and people over 29, believe that integration has gone too far.

Adrian Andrzejewski order