Let them be close and accessible. Asked to give their three priorities for public services, the French favor accessibility, cited by 86% of the sample, then presence in the territory (75%) according to a survey of 2,300 people commissioned by Printemps des services public, a group of associations, unions and collectives which aims to place public services “at the heart of the 2022 electoral deadlines”.
“There are a variety of ways to make a public service inaccessible,” notes Arnaud Bontemps, member of Printemps des services publics. “It is inaccessible due to disability (…), long queues, long delays in judgment”, he lists. “Accessibility is a particular concern among older respondents. Among those aged 60 and over, 9 out of 10 respondents believe that the accessibility of public services is one of the three priorities”, it is further specified in the survey.
15% of executives consider that public services have improved
In the sample, made up of 60% public officials, 45% of respondents consider that public services have “rather” deteriorated in recent years, and 41% even consider that they have deteriorated “a lot”. “The answers also differ according to socio-professional category”, indicates the Printemps des services publics. “15% of executives or higher intellectual professions surveyed believe that the public services they use have improved in recent years, compared to only 3% of unemployed men and women”.
Finally, the respondents are particularly unanimous on one point: 96% of them consider the debates on the future of public services “not up to the challenge”.
“There is a breaking point in too many public services: the hospital, the school, the justice system…, considers Arnaud Bontemps. When we talk about public services, either we talk about them from the angle of the plane, or else from the angle of laziness. We dodge the debate with periphrases.