Are there grounds for optimism about Britain’s youngest generation, and what might this mean for government and labour market? Data suggests that despite the pandemic, inflation, and war, the British public’s optimism for today’s youth has risen gently. Generational analysis suggests the youngest cohort, Generation Z, feels a little less pessimistic about their economic situation compared with Millennials when they were a similar age. But are they really a more optimistic group or just a reversion to the mean after the Millennials’ tough experience entering adulthood in the shadow of the 2008 economic crash?
Pulse Check delivers key insights from Ipsos' Political Monitor, Political Pulse, and Public Services data, along with reactive polling, to help you navigate the evolving political landscape.
As 2022 comes to an end, Ipsos asked the public to look forward to what 2023 could bring. From a general election, to a general strike, heatwaves to food shortages, what has next year got in store for us?
Economic turmoil has brought the housing affordability crisis into sharper relief for mortgage holders and renters. What can Government do? The response to COVID-19 was to pull more levers: eviction bans, mortgage and Stamp Duty holidays. In the Autumn Statement, Chancellor Jeremy Hunt announced capping social rents in England, but the Scottish Government had already gone further, faster, introducing a freeze on private as well as social rents and a moratorium on evictions. Previously, Michael Gove recommitted the Government to building 300,000 homes a year. Action will take years to deliver results, requiring considerable political courage. Public opinion will need careful management too. Has the housing crisis become bigger and uglier?
This edition of Understanding Society covers a diverse and varied array of topics relating to the cost-of-living crisis, and how the rising costs have been affecting British society. Ipsos researchers consider food insecurity, sustainable living, the housing market, generational divides, and much more.
Prime Minister Rishi Sunak gave a ‘cast-iron commitment’ to prioritise levelling up in his first PMQs. In the face of an economic situation requiring ‘eye-wateringly difficult decisions’, what hope do the public have that living standards, high streets, and public services will prosper in the coming years? The public are pessimistic about delivery but the appetite for action is unlikely to lessen.
