Public Services and Choice Poll
People are losing trust in Labour's ability to improve the economy and public services, according to a new survey by the MORI Social Research Institute. The general public are just as likely to trust the Conservatives to do the best job of improving the economy, education and transport in this country, as they are to trust Labour. Only a third (32%) believe that the Government's policies will improve the state of Britain's economy, and only just over a quarter (28%) believe that they will improve public services, down from 54% in 2001.
People are losing trust in Labour's ability to improve the economy and public services, according to a new survey by the MORI Social Research Institute. The general public are just as likely to trust the Conservatives to do the best job of improving the economy, education and transport in this country, as they are to trust Labour. Only a third (32%) believe that the Government's policies will improve the state of Britain's economy, and only just over a quarter (28%) believe that they will improve public services, down from 54% in 2001.
In 1997, Tony Blair claimed that 'Things could only get better', and a fifth (21%) now agree that things have changed for the better, both for them personally, and for the country as a whole. However, a third (32%) of people believe things have got worse for them personally, and 44% believe things have got worse for Britain as a whole.
Topline Results
- Results are based on 1,003 interviews conducted by MORI with a representative sample of residents aged 18+ across Great Britain
- Interviews were conducted by telephone between 7-8 July 2003.
- Data are weighted by gender, age, class, region, work status and tenure to the known profile of Great Britain.
- Where results do not sum to 100%, this may be due to multiple responses, computer rounding or the exclusion of 'don't know/not stated' response categories.
- Where there are small bases (less than 30 respondents) responses are given in absolute figures rather than percentage answers.
QV1 How would you vote if there were a General Election tomorrow, would you vote ...? IF UNDECIDED OR REFUSED ASK. QV2 Which party are you most inclined to support?
| QV1/V2 | |
|---|---|
| % | |
| Conservative | 35 |
| Labour | 38 |
| Liberal Democrat | 19 |
| Green Party | 2 |
| Scottish/Welsh Nationalist | 3 |
| Other | 3 |
| Labour lead over Conservatives (177%) | +3 |
| Would not vote | 14 |
| Undecided | 9 |
| Refused | 2 |
Q3 And how likely would you be to vote in an immediate general election, on a scale of 1 to 10, where 10 means you would be absolutely certain to vote and 1 that you would be absolutely certain NOT to vote?
| % | |
|---|---|
| 10 (Absolutely certain to vote) | 48 |
| 9 | 4 |
| 8 | 7 |
| 7 | 7 |
| 6 | 4 |
| 5 | 11 |
| 4 | 2 |
| 3 | 3 |
| 2 | 1 |
| 1 (Absolutely certain not to vote) | 12 |
| Don't know | 2 |
| Refused | * |
Q4-5 On balance, do you agree or disagree that ...
| Agree | Disagree | Don't know | |
|---|---|---|---|
| % | % | % | |
| "in the long term, this government's policies will improve the state of Britain's economy"? | 32 | 53 | 15 |
| "in the long term, this government's policies will improve the state of Britain's public services"? | 28 | 62 | 10 |
Q6-7 When Tony Blair became Prime Minister in May 1997 he said 'Things can only get better'. Since the General Election in May 1997, how, if at all, would you say things have changed for ...
| Much better | A little better | Stayed the same | A little worse | Much worse | Don't know | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| % | % | % | % | % | % | |
| Britain as a whole? | 4 | 17 | 31 | 23 | 21 | 3 |
| you personally? | 8 | 13 | 45 | 17 | 15 | 3 |
Q8-12 Which party, if any, would you trust most to improve ... the Conservatives, Labour, the Liberal Democrats or some other party?
| Conservatives | Labour | Liberal Democrats | Other | None | Don't know | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| % | % | % | % | % | % | |
| Britain's public services | 21 | 25 | 19 | 7 | 17 | 12 |
| Britain's economy | 27 | 27 | 13 | 5 | 16 | 12 |
| the National Health Service | 21 | 29 | 16 | 5 | 16 | 12 |
| Education in this country | 27 | 27 | 16 | 5 | 12 | 13 |
| Transport in this country | 23 | 23 | 15 | 7 | 16 | 16 |
Q13-14 How much choice, if any, do you have at the moment in choosing ... Would you say ... Base: *All excluding those saying 'not applicable' (490)
| A great deal | A fair amount | Not very much | None at all | Not applicable | Don't know | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| % | % | % | % | % | % | |
| Which school to send your children to | 7 | 17 | 16 | 6 | 52 | 2 |
| Which hospital to go to if you need treatment | 10 | 29 | 29 | 23 | 3 | 6 |
| Which school to send your children to* | 15 | 35 | 33 | 12 | - | 5 |
Q15-16 And how much choice do you think you should have in choosing ... Would you say ... Base: *All excluding those saying 'not applicable' (778)
| A great deal | A fair amount | Not very much | None at all | Not applicable | Don't know | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| % | % | % | % | % | % | |
| Which school to send your children to | 45 | 27 | 2 | 2 | 22 | 1 |
| Which hospital to go to if you need treatment | 50 | 39 | 5 | 4 | * | 2 |
| Which school to send your children to* | 58 | 35 | 3 | 2 | - | 1 |
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