ANDREAS WHITTAM SMITH: Who’s the odd one out in Europe? Not us - France has left Germany's side and the public mood is heading South

There is one more important change that the opinion polls highlight. In terms of public attitudes, France is becoming more Mediterranean. Take the table that shows changes in the proportion of respondents who believe their economy is in good shape. In 2007, there was a lot of good cheer. In fact, the British were the most optimistic, with 69 per cent saying economic conditions were good. Then came Spain at 65 per cent (which was also enjoying a residential property boom) and Germany at 63 per cent. The score for the habitually morose French was 30 per cent. But since then, except in Germany, deep pessimism has taken over. The proportions now thinking that economic conditions are acceptable have fallen to 15 per cent in Britain, 9 per cent in France, 4 per cent in Spain and 1 per cent in Greece. But 75 per cent of Germans still think things are pretty good. In other words, as Pew’s commentary on its results notes: “The French public mood is now looking less like that in Germany and more like that in the southern peripheral nations of Spain, Italy and Greece.”

Mein Blog befasst sich in einem umfassenden Sinn mit dem Verhältnis von Wissen, Wissenschaft und Gesellschaft. Ein besonderes Augenmerk richte ich dabei auf die Aktivitäten des Medien- und Dienstleistungskonzern Bertelsmann und der Bertelsmann Stiftung.