A NEW SURVEY has revealed that almost half of Irish people do not have confidence in the EU’s Covid-19 vaccines strategy. 

The Red C poll commissioned by European Movement Ireland found 48% of Irish people surveyed do not have confidence in the EU’s strategy for Covid-19 vaccines, while 45% do have confidence and 7% are unsure. 

The 18-24 and over 65 age groups were those with the most confidence in the strategy (48% and 58% respectively). 

The 45-54 age group were those with the least confidence in the strategy, with just 39% of respondents happy with it. 

Meanwhile, 49% of Irish people disagree that in order to deal with crises, such as Covid-19, Ireland and other Member States should give the EU more control over healthcare policy, even if they lose some control on a national level, while 35% agree and 16% are unsure. 

The Red C poll was conducted between 19 and 25 March this year among a sample of 1,003 people aged 18 and over from across the country. 

According to the survey, over half (54%) of Irish people agree that Ireland should be part of an increased EU defence security co-operation, while 27% disagree and 19% are unsure. 

Almost eight in 10 people (78%) believe that the US should remain an important ally for EU defence co-operation, while 9% disagree and 13% are unsure. 

A total of 68% of Irish people agree that Ireland’s seat on the UN Security Council offers the country an important opportunity to influence global affairs. 16% of people disagree with this statement and 16% are unsure. 

Nearly half of respondents (48%) don’t think the EU is doing enough to deal with the effects of the climate crisis, while 34% of Irish people think it is and 18% are unsure.

Northern Ireland

The survey also found that one-third (32%) of Irish people believe there will be a united Ireland in the European Union in the next 10 years. However, 43% disagree and 25% are unsure. 

Among the 18-24 and 25-44 age groups, a higher proportion (51% and 39% respectively) said they believed this would happen over the next decade. 

Elsewhere, another survey carried out by Lucid Talk on behalf of Queen’s University found that 57% of people in Northern Ireland don’t think Brexit is a “good thing” for the UK as a whole. 

Views among respondents are evenly split on whether the Protocol is overall good for Northern Ireland (43% agree and 44% disagree). 

Opinions are divided on whether the Northern Ireland Protocol offers the appropriate means for managing the impact of Brexit on the North (42% disagree and 46% agree). 

However, a majority of poll participants (65%) agree that particularly arrangements for Northern Ireland are necessary to management Brexit. 

The survey was carried out on over 2,100 people from 24 to 28 March, prior to the recent unrest in the North.