Concern about NHS rises to equal highest since 2020, concern about immigration rises to equal highest since 2017

The June 2024 Ipsos Issues Index reveals a rise in public concern about the NHS, economy and immigration

The author(s)
  • Gideon Skinner Public Affairs
  • Michael Clemence Trends & Foresight
  • Laura King Public Affairs
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  • The NHS remains the biggest issue facing the country, mentioned by 41% of Britons (+6 from last month to the equal highest since early 2020)
  • Concern about the economy is second at 33% (+5 from last month)
  • 30% name immigration as an important issue facing Britain (+3 from last month and the equal highest level since January 2017)

The NHS continues to be seen as the biggest issue facing the country, according to the monthly Ipsos Issues index. Concern has risen by six percentage points since May, with 41% seeing the health system as one of the biggest concerns for Britain.  This matches the 42% in January 2023, and previous to that is the highest since February 2020 (44%).

The NHS is followed by the economy at 33% (+5 from last month). Concern about immigration has risen to 30%, up three points from last month. This equals the highest level of concern around immigration since January 2017 (when it was 31%, in December 2023 it also reached 29%). Immigration is also the top issue for Conservative supporters, with 47% saying that it is the most important issue facing the country (for Labour supporters it is mentioned by 18%).

Inflation rounds out the top four issues at 29%, with no change since May. The NHS, the economy, immigration, and inflation have consistently ranked as the most important issues facing Britain in recent times.

Elsewhere in the poll, concern about education (+4), and defence/foreign affairs (+3) have also risen since last month.

 

Brexit (57%) was the number one issue in November 2019, one month out from the last general election. This was followed closely by the NHS (54%). Education ranked third at 21%, with the economy rounding out the top four at 19%.

 

Gideon Skinner, Senior UK Director of Politics at Ipsos said:

The start of the election campaign has increased the public’s focus on the issues that matter most to them: the NHS, the economy, and immigration.  While the NHS and the economy remain the top concern for Britons, anxieties about immigration have also continued to steadily rise over the last two years, although concentrated within specific groups. Our polling shows that around 3 in 4 Reform UK voters say they supported the Conservatives in 2019, and for 3 in 4 of these Conservative to Reform switchers immigration is very important to their decision. The increasing salience of this issue, combined with Nigel Farage’s entry into the race, may make it more difficult for the Conservatives to win these voters back.
Meanwhile, our trend data also shows how 2024 is shaping up to be a different election to the last one in 2019. Then Brexit was the top issue, now it languishes in 17th place. The NHS is a perennial public concern, and was second in 2019, but this year it has even more prominence, and is now joined by wider concerns over the economy, immigration and of course the cost of living, which has increased in importance five-fold since 2019.

Technical note 

Ipsos' Issues Index is conducted monthly and provides an overview of the key issues concerning the country. Ipsos interviewed a representative sample of c.1,000 adults aged 18+ across Great Britain. The answers are spontaneous responses, and participants are not prompted with any answers. Ipsos’ telephone omnibus was used for this survey. Interviews were conducted between 5-11 June 2024. Data are weighted to match the profile of the population. All polls are subject to a wide range of potential sources of error.

The author(s)
  • Gideon Skinner Public Affairs
  • Michael Clemence Trends & Foresight
  • Laura King Public Affairs

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