The French are among the most gloomy, distrustful and pessimistic people in Europe, according to an official study. They foresee catastrophe at every turn.
When asked to evaluate their standard of living, only 16 per cent of the French said that they were very satisfied – the lowest of any Western European country. The figure in Britain was 40 per cent.
French fear of the future was illustrated by the fact that 86 per cent of the population thought poverty could strike at any time, compared with 65 per cent in Britain and 62 per cent across the EU.
Only 8 per cent of respondents believed that their children would lead easier lives than they did, compared with 16 per cent of Britons and 57 per cent of Portuguese.
As well as losing faith in their institutions, they were even despairing about humanity itself. Only 22 per cent of French people said that they could trust others most of the time, far less than the EU average of 30 per cent and the British rating of 36 per cent, for instance.
The French also had less confidence in their police, their courts, their unions and their MPs than the British. Even their own homes did not escape their angst, with les Français less satisfied with their families than most other EU countries, including Britain.
The malaise stems from two decades of high unemployment – between 8 and 12 per cent – which has spread anxiety even among workers unlikely to lose their jobs.
