The Dutch have become a lot more optimistic about the future but still a slight majority think the Netherlands is heading in the wrong direction, according to the latest quarterly survey by the government’s socio-economic think-tank SCP.

Some 37% of people now think things are going well in society and the economy, compared with 28% in the previous quarter. The number of pessimists has gone down from 61% to 53%.

In particular, the pessimists are worried about the more brutal way people are dealing with each other, refugees and healthcare, the SCP said.

The survey also shows that support for the EU has reverted back following the Brexit and Ukraine referendum upswing.

Almost four in 10 people now think the EU membership is a good thing and just 26% think the Netherlands should not be a member of the European body. In the wake of the Brexit vote, support for the EU went up to 46%.

This article was amended to reflect a mistake in the final paragraph on support for the EU