Political Attitudes in Great Britain, July 1996
MORI Political Monitor survey for The Times, with additional questions covering "best party on key issues" and the Conservatives' "New Labour, New Danger" advertsing campaign
MORI interviewed a representative quota sample of 1,928 adults aged 18+ at 149 ward sampling points across Great Britain. Fieldwork was conducted face-to-face on 23-28 July 1996, as part of MORI's regular Omnibus survey. Data are weighted to match the profile of the population.
Q1 How would you vote if there were a General Election tomorrow? IF UNDECIDED OR REFUSED AT Q1 Q2 Which party are you most inclined to support?
| % | |
|---|---|
| Conservative | 29 |
| Labour | 53 |
| Liberal Democrats (Lib Dem) | 12 |
| Scottish/Welsh Nationalist | 2 |
| Green Party | 1 |
| Referendum Party | * |
| Other | 1 |
| Voting intention percentages exclude 7% undecided, 3% refused and 9% would not vote | |
Q3 Are you satisfied or dissatisfied with the way the Government is running the country? Q4 Are you satisfied or dissatisfied with the way Mr Major is doing his job as Prime Minister? Q5 Are you satisfied or dissatisfied with the way Mr Blair is doing his job as Leader of the Labour Party? Q6 Are you satisfied or dissatisfied with the way Mr Ashdown is doing his job as Leader of the Liberal Democrats?
| Satisfied | Dissatisfied | Don't know | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Government | % | 15 | 76 | 9 |
| Major | % | 28 | 63 | 9 |
| Blair | % | 43 | 32 | 25 |
| Ashdown | % | 39 | 27 | 34 |
Q7 What would you say is the most important issue facing Britain today? Q8 What do you see as other important issues facing Britain today? UNPROMPTED ANSWERS
| Q7 | Q7/8 | |
|---|---|---|
| % | % | |
| AIDS | * | 1 |
| Animal welfare | * | * |
| Beef/BSE/Mad Cow Disease | 2 | 5 |
| Common Market/EU/Europe/Single European Currency | 14 | 25 |
| Crime/law & order/violence/vandalism | 12 | 29 |
| Defence/foreign affairs | * | 2 |
| Drug abuse | 1 | 6 |
| Economy/economic situation | 6 | 14 |
| Education/schools | 8 | 31 |
| Housing | 1 | 8 |
| Inflation/prices | * | 3 |
| Local government/council tax | * | 1 |
| Morality/individual behaviour | 1 | 4 |
| National Health Service/Hospitals | 9 | 35 |
| Northern Ireland | 1 | 4 |
| Nuclear power/fuels | * | * |
| Nuclear weapons/nuclear war/disarmament | * | * |
| Pensions/social security | 2 | 9 |
| Pollution/environment | 1 | 5 |
| Pound/exchange rate/value of pound | * | 1 |
| Privatisation | * | 3 |
| Race relations/immigration/immigrants | 1 | 3 |
| Scottish Assembly | * | * |
| Taxation | * | 3 |
| Trade unions/strikes | * | * |
| Unemployment/factory closure/lack of industry | 25 | 43 |
| Other | 9 | 22 |
| Don't know | 5 | 4 |
Q9 Do you think that the general economic condition of the country will improve, stay the same, or get worse over the next 12 months?
| % | |
|---|---|
| Improve | 23 |
| Stay the same | 39 |
| Get worse | 32 |
| Don't know | 6 |
Q10 Looking ahead to the next General Election, which, if any of these issues do you think will be very important to you in helping you to decide which party to vote for?
| % | |
|---|---|
| Defence | 9 |
| Education | 51 |
| Europe | 19 |
| Health care | 60 |
| Housing | 17 |
| Law and Order | 45 |
| Managing the economy | 26 |
| Northern Ireland | 13 |
| Pensions | 29 |
| Protecting the natural environment | 20 |
| Public transport | 12 |
| Taxation | 26 |
| Trade Unions | 5 |
| Unemployment | 48 |
| Other | 2 |
| Don't know | 4 |
Q11-24 I am going to read out a list of problems facing Britain today, and for each one, I would like you to tell me whether you think the Conservatives, Labour, Liberal Democrat or some other party has the best policy on each. Base: All
| Con | Lab | LD | Other | None | Don't know | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Defence | % | 32 | 15 | 5 | 1 | 7 | 40 |
| Education | % | 19 | 42 | 8 | 1 | 6 | 25 |
| Europe | % | 21 | 23 | 7 | 1 | 12 | 37 |
| Health care | % | 12 | 52 | 4 | 1 | 6 | 24 |
| Housing | % | 13 | 44 | 4 | 1 | 6 | 24 |
| Law and Order | % | 29 | 25 | 5 | 1 | 10 | 31 |
| Managing the economy | % | 28 | 27 | 5 | 1 | 9 | 30 |
| Northern Ireland | % | 23 | 14 | 3 | 1 | 16 | 42 |
| Pensions | % | 14 | 38 | 4 | 1 | 8 | 35 |
| Protecting the natural environment | % | 11 | 19 | 16 | 14 | 8 | 33 |
| Public transport | % | 9 | 40 | 5 | 2 | 7 | 37 |
| Taxation | % | 28 | 31 | 6 | 1 | 7 | 28 |
| Trade Unions | % | 18 | 43 | 3 | 1 | 6 | 30 |
| Unemployment | % | 14 | 46 | 4 | 1 | 9 | 27 |
| Con | Lab | LD | Other | None | Don't know | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Defence | % | 43 | 18 | 5 | * | 10 | 24 |
| Education | % | 15 | 46 | 10 | 1 | 7 | 22 |
| Europe | % | 29 | 25 | 8 | 1 | 14 | 23 |
| Health care | % | 10 | 59 | 4 | 1 | 6 | 20 |
| Housing | % | 6 | 54 | 5 | 1 | 8 | 26 |
| Law and Order | % | 32 | 28 | 4 | 1 | 10 | 26 |
| Managing the economy | % | 36 | 31 | 5 | 1 | 10 | 18 |
| Northern Ireland | % | 27 | 20 | 3 | 0 | 19 | 32 |
| Pensions | % | 11 | 51 | 4 | 1 | 9 | 25 |
| Protecting the natural environment | % | 10 | 20 | 19 | 20 | 8 | 23 |
| Public transport | % | 5 | 59 | 7 | 4 | 6 | 20 |
| Taxation | % | 33 | 31 | 5 | 1 | 8 | 22 |
| Trade Unions | % | 23 | 54 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 19 |
| Unemployment | % | 10 | 55 | 4 | 1 | 8 | 22 |
Q25a As you may know, the Conservative Party has recently launched an advertising campaign using the slogan "New Labour, New Danger". On balance has this campaign made you more favourable towards the Labour Party, less favourable towards the Labour Party, or has it made no difference? Q25b And on balance has this campaign made you more favourable towards the Conservative Party, less favourable towards the Conservative Party, or has it made no difference?
| To Lab | ToCon | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| All | Ex-Con* | New Lab* | All | Ex-Con* | New Lab* | |
| More favourable | 11 | 17 | 22 | 3 | 1 | 2 |
| Less favourable | 4 | 2 | 2 | 22 | 29 | 33 |
| Made no difference | 66 | 68 | 60 | 57 | 58 | 51 |
| Don't know | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 1 |
| Not heard of campaign | 17 | 12 | 14 | 17 | 11 | 13 |
| Net favourable | +7 | +15 | +20 | -19 | -28 | -31 |
Q26 Generally speaking, do you think of yourself as Conservative, Labour, Liberal Democrat, or what?
| % | |
|---|---|
| Conservative | 27 |
| Labour | 38 |
| Liberal Democrat | 10 |
| Scottish/Welsh Nationalist | 2 |
| Green | 1 |
| Other | 1 |
| Don't know | 5 |
| None of these | 13 |
| Refused | 2 |
Q27 Which party did you vote for at the last general election, in April 1992? If you are not sure, or did not vote, please say so.
| % | |
|---|---|
| Conservative | 29 |
| Labour | 32 |
| Liberal Democrat | 11 |
| Scottish/Welsh Nationalist | 2 |
| Green | 1 |
| Other | * |
| Did not vote | 16 |
| Too young | 4 |
| Can't remember | 1 |
| Refused | 4 |
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