Optimism in the Scottish and UK economies falls

Scottish people are deeply concerned about economic prospects for Scotland and the UK, according to our latest Scottish Public Opinion Monitor. More than half of Scots (55%) think that the economic condition of Scotland will get worse over the next 12 months (an increase of 25 percentage points since April), while just over one in five (21%) believe it will improve (down 20 percentage points). Scots are slightly less pessimistic about the UK economy; 46% think that it will get worse (up 20 percentage points) while 27% think it will improve (down 20 percentage points). Public spending cuts Scots are divided over whether there is a real need to cut public services in order to pay off the national debt we currently have, with 47% agreeing with a similar proportion disagreeing (45%). However, they are more likely to agree that making public services more efficient can save enough money to pay off the national debt, without damaging public services (56% agree compared to 37% who disagree). In addition, more than eight out of ten Scots (82%) think that the Government's priority should be to protect services for people who most need help, even if it means that some people are harder hit by tax rises and cuts to services they use. In contrast, just over one in ten (13%) think that the only way for the government to reduce the deficit is to cut spending on all public services, even if that includes services that are only used by people who most need help.

Most Scots (83%) also think that it is better to cut spending more slowly, to reduce the impact on public services and the economy, while a smaller proportion (14%) think that it is important to cut spending quickly, even if it means immediate job losses, because it will be better for the economy in the long run.

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• Download the full computer tables (PDF)160
• Download the briefing slides (PDF)

Technical Note

• Results are based on a survey of 1,013 respondents160conducted by telephone between 16th August and 19th August160
• Data are weighted by age, sex and working status using census data, and tenure using SHS 2007-2008 data.160
• An asterisk (*) indicates a percentage of less than 0.5% but greater than 0.160
• Where results do not sum to 100, this may be due to multiple responses or computer rounding.160
• Where the base size is less than 30 the number (N) rather than the percentage of respondents is given.160
• Results are based on all respondents (1,013) unless otherwise stated.