Five years after the financial crisis first hit Europe, citizens of European Union member states are growing increasingly wary of the body that was supposed to provide them with economic benefits. Public confidence in the E.U. has dropped to staggering new lows, according to an annual survey conducted by the nonpartisan, Washington-based Pew Research Center.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe European Union is the new sick man of Europe,\u201d\u009d according to Pew\u2019s report of the survey results. \u201cThe effort over the past half century to create a more united Europe is now the principal casualty of the euro crisis. The European project now stands in disrepute across much of Europe.\u201d\u009d<\/p>\n
Support for the EU has taken a huge hit over the past year, falling in five of the eight E.U. countries surveyed by Pew.<\/p>\n