Ipsos Research Highlights - August 2022
In our latest Ipsos Research Highlights we explore trust in politicians, whether British workers need to work harder and what makes the public proud to be British.
Half support an election taking place once the new Prime Minister is in place
Half of Britons (51%) are in favour of a general election being held this year, once the new Prime Minister is in place, with just 1 in 5 (20%) opposed. Unsurprisingly, almost 7 in 10 Labour voters support an early election but this falls to 4 in 10 among Conservative voters.
6 in 10 do not trust Boris Johnson to tell the truth, nearly twice as many as Keir Starmer
With the results of the Conservative leadership contest due on 5 September we’ve been looking at who the public trust to tell the truth. The British public are very sceptical, especially the current Prime Minister, Boris Johnson. Around 6 in 10 say he generally does not tell the truth very often or never (61%). In comparison, opinion is split as to whether the Leader of the Opposition can be trusted to tell the truth. Three in 10 (30%) say they trust Keir Starmer most or all of the time while a third (33%) say they do not. Looking at Boris Johnson’s potential replacements, both candidates see similar levels of trust but have a way to go if they plan to gain the trust of the public.
Ipsos Issues Index: August 2022
As inflation hit 10.1% in July, 54% say it is one of the biggest issues facing the country and almost four in ten (37%) say this is the single most important national concern. This represents another new highest level of concern for this issue since the 80s. There has been a surge in concern about the environment, pollution and climate change this month: 23% mention this as a big issue for the country.
1 in 3 Britons say affording energy bills has been difficult in the past three months
As public concern about the cost of living crisis grows, one in three say it has been difficult to afford their energy bill before the expected further rise in the energy cap. In an effort to try and reduce their energy bills, 4 in 10 (39%) have used price comparison websites to look for a cheaper supplier in the last 3 months while 36% have installed a smart meter at home. Looking ahead, 3 in 10 workers expect to work more hours at their current job because of the rising cost of living.
Two-thirds say the Government is not providing enough support on the cost of living
We know the cost of living crisis will of course be a top priority for the new Prime Minister as we approach winter, heating bills surge and public concern grows. Two-thirds (66%) of Britons say the UK Government is not providing enough support. We’ve found rising levels of dissatisfaction among Conservative voters as 59% say the government are not doing enough and Labour are pulling ahead as the party most trusted to reduce the cost of living. Only 3 in 10 say they trust the Conservative party to reduce their and their family’s cost of living, compared to 45% saying they trust Labour.
Nearly half of Britons agree that British workers need to “work harder”
Following the leaked audio recording in which Liz Truss said that British workers lacked the “skill and application” found in other countries, nearly 1 in 2 (46%) members of the British public agree and say British workers need to work harder. This sentiment is shared more strongly by those who voted Conservative in the 2019 General Election than by those who voted Labour. However, we don’t have these doubts when it comes to our personal effort. The majority of us believe we work hard and half of us claim we work harder than our peers.
In other news
Join our annual Beyond the Bubble fringe events will be taking place at the Labour and Conservative Party Conferences. I’ll be joined by leading academics, politicians, and media to look at the latest polls and consider what Britons really think about the new Prime Minister, the present and future challenges for the Conservatives and Labour, and priorities ahead of the general election.
- What do Britons really think of Labour? - The Labour Party Conference 2022
- What do Britons really think of politics, the parties, and their leaders? - The Conservative Party Conference 2022
As ever, please do let us know what you think, and I hope you find something to interest you.
Kelly Beaver MBE,
Chief Executive,
Ipsos UK & Ireland
[email protected]