Nearly three out of four European Union (EU) women think the Covid-19 pandemic has spurred an increase in physical and psychological violence against them, according to a Eurobarometer poll.

The poll, commissioned by the European Parliament ahead of Women's Day on March 8, shows 77 per cent of women in the EU think the pandemic caused a rise in gender violence in their countries, with nine in 10 respondents in Greece and Portugal saying so.

Asked how to tackle the problem, 58pc of interviewed women said it should be made easier to report gender violence, Reuters reports.