Europeans are more worried about the outlook for the economy and jobs next year. In addition, confidence in public institutions has taken a knock, according to an opinion poll released by the European Commission yesterday.

The President of the Commission, Mr Romano Prodi, said the acrimonious dispute over European Union budget rules and horse-trading between governments was souring the mood of many Europeans.

"These results highlight the growing sense of pessimism felt by people right across the European Union," Mr Prodi said.

"Bitter disputes like that over the Stability and Growth Pact and unseemly horse-trading between national government detracts from the good work which is going on in the EU to build a better society for everyone," he added in a statement.

The preliminary results of a poll carried out in the 15 EU member-states between October 1st and November 7th showed respondents were less optimistic than in March about economic and employment prospects for 2004.

However, this did not appear to affect expectations for their personal job situation.

"The latest Eurobarometer opinion poll... reveals a general decline in public confidence since the previous survey carried out in the spring," a statement said.

More comprehensive results of the survey will be released next week, the Commission said.

Only 15 per cent of the 16,082 respondents over the age of 15 trusted political parties, down one point, while 31 per cent trusted national governments, a decline of six points.

The survey also found a five percentage point decline in support for the euro, although average support for the currency in the 12 euro-zone countries remained high at 70 per cent.