With just two weeks to go until the Scottish Parliament election on 7th May, new data from Ipsos’s Scotland Political Pulse shows that, while voters are not particularly impressed by any of the parties, the SNP have the edge, with views on both the party and their leader improving since last month.
The latest Ipsos Economic Optimism Index (EOI) reveals that net economic optimism in Britain has fallen to the lowest levels ever recorded since Ipsos began collecting this data in 1978. In the latest data, collected 8-14 April 2026, 78% of Britons expect the economy to get worse over the next 12 months (up 3ppts since last month), the highest level recorded since the Index began.
Ipsos’ latest English local elections research is now released, with fieldwork carried out 2-8 April. This means field work was carried out before media reporting around Peter Mandelson’s vetting and the Government’s response. Ipsos interviewed more than 1,600 adults in England in local authorities where elections are taking place in May.
