Has the Prime Minister's speech given Britain ‘hope back again’?

• Four in ten British adults (38%) say Andy Burnham's Labour Conference speech makes them feel more hopeful about Britain's public services, though Britons remain divided on the impact on hope for their own quality of life.
• A third of Britons (35%) say everything they've seen or heard about Andy Burnham makes them feel positive, while over a third (over 36%) think he will change the country for the better, up from a quarter in July - although those who think he will change the country for the worse have also risen from 15% to 24%.
• Seven in ten adults (70%) support exempting low-income pensioners from paying income tax, while 4 in 10 (42%) prefer lowering annual pension increases to fund a new National Social Care service against 25% who would rather keep the triple lock.  But this varies by party support.

Commenting on the findings, Alex Bogdan, Research Director of UK Politics at Ipsos said:

The Prime Minister's Labour Conference speech has entered the national conversation at a critical juncture, with around four in ten Britons following the developments closely. 

Our latest data captures a nuanced public mood: while there are some encouraging signs of positivity and growing belief that the leadership can change the country for the better (albeit some critics are growing more negative too), Brits remain sharply focused on practical trade-offs, particularly regarding the triple lock and social care reform.

As public awareness crystallises around key announcements like the new National Care System and adjustments to the triple lock, the central challenge for Labour will be translating these policy visions into tangible improvements that resonate beyond public services and into individual household well-being.

The coming months will test whether this conference momentum   can sustain a broader, lasting renewal of public confidence as the government implements its legislative and economic agenda.

Public hope and perceptions of national direction

Following the Prime Minister's conference announcements, public sentiment shows signs of shifting optimism regarding leadership and key national sectors: 

• Around 4 in 10 British adults report that the Prime Minister's speech makes them feel more hopeful about Britain's public services. 
• However, Britons remain divided on whether the address makes them more or less hopeful about their own personal quality of life. 
• A third of Britons (33%) report that everything they have seen or heard about Andy Burnham makes them feel positive overall, compared to 28% who feel negative.
• Over a third of the public (35%) believe that Andy Burnham will change the country for the better, marking an increase from a quarter (26%) recorded in July – however those who think he will change the country for the worse have also grown from 15% to 24%. 

Policy announcements and trade-offs

The research also examines public awareness and support for specific policy measures unveiled during the conference, alongside difficult fiscal choices: 

• Around half of Britons have seen or heard about changes to the triple lock (54%) and the establishment of a new National Care System (47%). 
• Seven in ten adults (70%) express support for exempting low-income pensioners from paying income tax. 
• When presented with a direct trade-off, 4 in 10 British adults prefer to lower the amount by which state pensions increase every year by scrapping the triple lock, using the freed funds to establish a National Social Care service that is free at the point of use (42%), versus a quarter who favour keeping the traditional triple lock even if it means less money for a national social care service (preferred by 25%).

However, support to retain the triple lock as it currently is, varies amongst 2024 Reform, Conservative and Labour voters.

• 2024 Reform voters support retaining the triple lock over the proposed changes by a margin of 45% to 23%

• 2024 Conservatives are more split but lean towards retaining the triple lock 43% to 35%

• 2024 Labour voters strongly support the proposed policy at 63% support. As do a majority of Lib Dems at 54%.

Notes to Editors:

• For media queries, please contact [email protected] or Keiran Pedley at [email protected]. 
• Ipsos interviewed a representative sample of 1,039 online British adults aged 18–75. Polling was conducted online between 29–30 September 2026. 
• Data are weighted to match the profile of the population. All polls are subject to a wide range of potential sources of error.