British Attitudes To The Euro, Company Directors And Working Life
A wide-ranging MORI survey for the FT including questions on joining the Euro, trust in directors of large companies, government experts and Tony Blair
- Results based on 1,002 British adults aged 16+
- Interviews were conducted by telephone, between 20-22 June 2003
- Results are based on all respondents unless otherwise stated
- Data are weighted to the profile of the population
- An '*' indicates a finding of less than 0.5%, but greater than zero
- Where percentages do not add up to exactly 100% this may be due to computer rounding, the exclusion of "don't knows" or to multiple answers
- Poll carried out by MORI on behalf of The Financial Times
Q1 If there were a referendum now on whether Britain should stay in or get out of the European Union, how would you vote?
| All | All expressing an opinion (909) | |
|---|---|---|
| % | % | |
| Stay in | 49 | 54 |
| Get out | 41 | 46 |
| Don't know | 10 | - |
Q2 Which of the following statements I am going to read out best describes your own view of British participation in the single currency?
| Nov 2002 | Apr 2003 | June 2003 | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| % | % | % | % | |
| I strongly support British participation | 16 | 15 | 12 | 38 |
| I am generally in favour of British participation, but could be persuaded against it if I thought it would be bad for the British economy | 23 | 22 | 26 | |
| I am generally opposed to British participation, but could be persuaded in favour of it if I thought it would be good for the British economy | 22 | 23 | 26 | 57 |
| I strongly oppose British participation | 32 | 33 | 31 | |
| None of these | - | 1 | 2 | |
| Don't know | 7 | 5 | 2 |
Q3 And which would describe your own view of British participation in the single currency if the Chancellor, Gordon Brown, were to recommend that Britain should join?
| % | % | |
|---|---|---|
| I strongly support British participation | 17 | 41 |
| I am generally in favour of British participation, but could be persuaded against it if I thought it would be bad for the British economy | 24 | |
| I am generally opposed to British participation, but could be persuaded in favour of it if I thought it would be good for the British economy | 24 | 54 |
| I strongly oppose British participation | 30 | |
| None of these | 2 | |
| Don't know | 3 |
Q4 How likely or unlikely is it that people in Britain will have joined the single European currency by the year 2010?
| % | % | |
|---|---|---|
| Very likely | 31 | 74 |
| Fairly likely | 43 | |
| Fairly unlikely | 14 | 21 |
| Very unlikely | 7 | |
| Don't know | 5 |
Q5 Do you think the Labour Government is united or divided about whether Britain should join the single currency or not?
Q6 And do you think the Conservative Party is united or divided about whether Britain should join the single currency or not?
| Q5 | Q6 | |
|---|---|---|
| % | % | |
| Divided | 83 | 60 |
| United | 11 | 23 |
| Don't know | 6 | 17 |
Q7 Please tell me to what extent you agree or disagree with the following statement. "If there were a referendum on whether Britain should approve the proposed new European Union constitution, I would vote to approve it."
| % | % | |
|---|---|---|
| Strongly agree | 9 | 29 |
| Tend to agree | 20 | |
| Neither agree nor disagree | 15 | |
| Tend to disagree | 17 | 42 |
| Strongly disagree | 25 | |
| Don't know | 14 |
Q8 If you came into 16310,000 tax free money, which you had to save or invest, which, if any, of the following would you choose to do with some or all of the money?
| % | |
|---|---|
| Pay-off mortgage | 27 |
| Put in a Bank savings account | 25 |
| Put in a Building Society savings account | 23 |
| Buy ISA(s) | 23 |
| Buy Premium Bonds | 10 |
| Buy Stocks and Shares | 10 |
| Put in National Savings products or Post Office Accounts | 7 |
| None of these | 7 |
| Other | 5 |
| Don't know | 1 |
Q9 In many countries, most mortgages have a fixed interest rate level over the lifetime of the mortgage (e.g. for 25 years). A fixed-rate mortgage generally has a higher interest rate than variable mortgages, but is guaranteed not to increase. How interested, if at all, would you be in converting your mortgage into a fixed rate mortgage?
Base: All who have mortgages 432
| % | % | |
|---|---|---|
| Very interested | 11 | 29 |
| Fairly interested | 18 | |
| Not very interested | 18 | 50 |
| Not at all interested | 32 | |
| Already have fixed rate mortgage | 15 | |
| Don't know | 6 |
Q10-12 I would like to read some statements about business and companies. Please tell me to what extent you agree or disagree with each statement.
| Strongly agree | Tend to agree | Neither agree nor disagree | Tend to disagree | Strongly disagree | No opinion | A/D | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| % | % | % | % | % | % | % | |
| Q10 Directors of large companies can be trusted to tell the truth | 2 | 9 | 7 | 38 | 42 | 1 | 11/80 |
| Q11 Directors of large companies are paid too much for the job they do | 59 | 19 | 5 | 10 | 4 | 2 | 78/14 |
| Q12 Companies can be trusted to honour their pension commitments to employees | 6 | 19 | 7 | 29 | 34 | 4 | 25/63 |
Q13-15 Please tell me to what extent you agree or disagree with the following statements.
Base: All in employment (590)
| Strongly agree | Tend to agree | Neither agree nor disagree | Tend to disagree | Strongly disagree | No opinion | A/D | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| % | % | % | % | % | % | % | |
| Q13 I feel that I have a good work/life balance | 34 | 35 | 3 | 15 | 12 | 1 | 69/27 |
| Q14 I feel that I receive enough support from my employer to manage stress at work | 28 | 28 | 7 | 13 | 19 | 4 | 56/32 |
| Q15 Company pension schemes are worth joining | 29 | 35 | 8 | 12 | 10 | 5 | 64/22 |
Q16 How well run would you say your workplace is?
Q17 How well run would you say the country is?
| Q16 | Q17 | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Base: | All in employment (590) | All (1,002) | ||
| % | % | % | % | |
| Very well | 28 | 77 | 5 | 55 |
| Fairly well | 49 | 50 | ||
| Fairly poorly | 14 | 21 | 30 | 44 |
| Very poorly | 7 | 14 | ||
| Don't know | 2 | 2 |
Q18-24 How much would you say you trust each of the following to give you good advice? Would you trust them a great deal, a fair amount, not very much or not at all?
| Great deal | Fair amount | Not very much | Not at all | No opinion | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| % | % | % | % | % | % | |
| Q18 Government scientists | 8 | 37 | 34 | 15 | 6 | 45/49 |
| Q19 Government health advisers | 7 | 45 | 32 | 13 | 3 | 52/45 |
| Q20 The Food Standards Agency | 13 | 52 | 24 | 8 | 4 | 65/32 |
| Q21 Politicians | 1 | 18 | 42 | 38 | 1 | 19/80 |
| Q22 The Internet | 7 | 40 | 20 | 10 | 23 | 47/30 |
| Q23 Your doctor | 55 | 36 | 5 | 3 | 1 | 91/8 |
| Q24 Your family and friends | 70 | 26 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 96/4 |
Q25 How much, if anything, would you say you know about the work of the Financial Services Authority?
| % | |
|---|---|
| Know a great deal | 3 |
| Know a fair amount | 11 |
| Know just a little | 28 |
| Heard of but know nothing about it | 27 |
| Never heard of | 31 |
| Don't know | 1 |
Q26 How well do you think that the Financial Services Authority is doing its job of safeguarding investors?
Base: All who know at least a little about the FSA (415)
| % | % | |
|---|---|---|
| Very good | 4 | 57 |
| Fairly good | 53 | |
| Fairly poor | 26 | 34 |
| Very poor | 8 | |
| Don't know | 8 |
Q27 How strongly do you support or oppose London's bid to hold the 2012 Olympic Games?
| % | % | |
|---|---|---|
| Strongly support | 39 | 63 |
| Tend to support | 24 | |
| Neither support nor oppose | 16 | |
| Tend to oppose | 8 | 18 |
| Strongly oppose | 10 | |
| Don't know | 2 |
Q28 And why do you say that?
Base: All who support London's Olympic bid (631)
| % | |
|---|---|
| Good for economy and jobs | 50 |
| Good for morale/national pride/prestige | 32 |
| Good to have a major sporting event in Britain | 26 |
| Good for tourism | 22 |
| Good for London's transport infrastructure/will mean investment in transport | 8 |
| Easier to get to games as spectator | 4 |
| Will help British competitors win medals | 3 |
| Other | 8 |
| Don't know | 5 |
Q29 And why do you say that?
Base: All who oppose London's Olympic bid (184)
| % | |
|---|---|
| Waste of money/should be spent on something else | 48 |
| Shouldn't be London/London gets too many events | 33 |
| Don't want to pay extra taxes/council tax | 8 |
| Would be bad for Olympics/will be badly run | 6 |
| London cannot cope with extra tourists | 4 |
| The country can't afford it/Too expensive | 3 |
| Don't like sport | 2 |
| Crime/Security/Terrorism | 2 |
| London is too congested | 1 |
| Will not have any impact on me | * |
| Other | 10 |
| Don't know | 2 |
Q30 Now, thinking about politics. Can you tell me the name of the leader of the Conservative Party?
| % | |
|---|---|
| Iain Duncan Smith | 62 |
| Other | 3 |
| No/don't know | 35 |
Q31 Please tell me to what extent you agree or disagree with the following statement. "Tony Blair is losing his grip"
| % | % | |
|---|---|---|
| Strongly agree | 30 | 63 |
| Tend to agree | 33 | |
| Neither agree nor disagree | 10 | |
| Tend to disagree | 17 | 25 |
| Strongly disagree | 8 | |
| Don't know | 2 |
Q32 Which of the phrases I'm going to read out best describes your trust in Tony Blair?
| % | |
|---|---|
| I have never trusted him | 28 |
| I used to trust him before the beginning of the year, but I don't trust him now | 38 |
| I still trust him | 31 |
| Don't know | 4 |
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