Nearly two-thirds of French people think the European Union is headed in the wrong direction and more than half disapprove of President Francois Hollande's leadership, according to a widely-watched survey released on Wednesday, reports The West Australian.
The poll, conducted in six EU countries by Gallup, also found most Britons want to leave the European Union, a higher figure than in other recent surveys. That is likely to fuel demands for an early British referendum on EU membership.
But perhaps the most striking findings were those related to France, a founding EU member state that is experiencing increasing disillusionment over Europe amid slumping growth and rising unemployment since Hollande took office a year ago.
The survey showed opinions in France and Germany, the traditional twin motors of Europe, are diverging, undermining unity over where the continent is headed following three years of economic upheaval and social tension.
"The French-German axis that provided the largest basis for common European policy in the past is now weakening, reflecting the diverging mood in the two countries," Gallup's Anna Manchin wrote in an accompanying analysis.
"The French are losing confidence in globalization and growing insecure in their position within Europe. Our findings reflect this turn in France away from the EU toward more pressing national problems."
The survey showed that the French are the least likely to say things are moving in the right direction in the EU (17 percent), while 62 percent say they are moving in the wrong direction, a figure that rises to 86 percent among those who say they disapprove of Hollande's leadership.
Read more of this Reuters report published by The West Australian.