Economy, immigration and the NHS remain the top issues for Britain, as concern about defence reaches highest level since the early months of the Russian invasion of Ukraine

The February 2025 Ipsos Issues Index reveals that the economy, immigration and the NHS remain the top concerns for Britons.

• The economy continues to be seen as the biggest issue facing the country, with thirty-six per cent of Britons mentioning it as an issue. Concern remains at a similar level to that recorded in January.
• Immigration remains the second-biggest issue for the country, mentioned by 32%. Significant differences in concern remain: it is the top issue for Reform UK (74%) supporters, those aged 55+ (41%) and people in social grades C2DE (36%).
• The NHS also remains a big worry for Britons, with 31% mentioning it as an issue. Concern remains relatively unchanged since last month, seeing a small decrease of two percentage points.

Inflation remains the fourth-biggest issue, mentioned by 20% of Britons. The proportion mentioning it as an issue has risen three points since last month and it remains a more significant concern for younger age groups (28% among 18-34 year olds), and ethnic minority Britons (31%).

Concern about defence and foreign affairs has risen eight percentage points since January, making it the sixth-biggest issue this month. This is the highest level of concern seen since May 2022, following the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Fieldwork covered the period of 12-18 February, during time which US President Donald Trump revealed he had spoken directly to Russian President Vladimir Putin about ending the conflict.

Mike Clemence, Research Director at Ipsos said:

“A broad range of concerns remain top of mind for the British public. The economy, immigration and the NHS dominate, but inflation and housing loom large for a significant number, especially among younger people. The salience of defence and foreign affairs jumped in February, following President Trump’s initial attempts to end the war in Ukraine. While public concern on this issue is likely to continue at its elevated level, longstanding bread-and-butter issues like the NHS, immigration and the economy will remain at the top of the public’s agenda.”

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 1,005 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 12-18 February 2025. Data are weighted to match the profile of the population. All polls are subject to a wide range of potential sources of error.