Inequality in Europe: public opinion on differences in income in EU 2022

As of 2022, Portugal was the EU country with the most respondents agreeing that income differences between citizens have become too great, with almost 95 percent of respondents either agreeing or strongly agreeing with the statement. Other countries which had high shares of respondents agreeing with the statement included Bulgaria, Hungary, and Lithuania, all post-communist countries which have experienced sharp upticks in inequality over recent decades.

Interestingly, in Germany there is a relatively large divergence between eastern and western Germany on this issue, as the former communist East had the joint highest amount of people agreeing, with almost two-thirds strongly agreeing. On the other hand in the West, 9 percent less of respondents agreed with the statement, illustrating that 33 years since German reunification, there are still significant differences in opinion, especially concerning inequality. 

The three countries which agree with the statement the least were the three Nordic member states of the EU, Denmark, Finland, and Sweden. Their disagreement with the statement is likely related to the tradition of the 'Nordic model' of the welfare state in these countries, which provides comprehensive welfare support to citizens and acts to reduce inequalities. Whilst this model has come under pressure in recent decades, it is still clear tha it has resulted in the citizens of these countries viewing inequality as a much lesser problem than in other EU member states.