Two in five Britons think the Monarchy should be modernised, but demand for reform was higher at the turn of the century

New polling by Ipsos looking at the future role of the monarchy reveals that two in five (41%) think it should be modernised to reflect changes in British life. This though is lower than at the turn of the century, when around six in ten held this view, while it is broadly in line with more recent results from 2021. Three in ten (32%) say the monarchy’s role should remain broadly unchanged, while one in seven (15%) think the monarchy should be abolished and that Britain should become a republic.

In a separate poll, people are split over whether or not a hereditary monarchy makes sense in a modern democracy (by 42% to 39%), but nevertheless most  of the public (55%) agreed that Britain should keep the monarchy, compared to a quarter (25%) who think that Britain should become a republic (the largest proportion, 36%, say that a hereditary monarchy does make sense and that Britain should keep it).

Most republicans say a hereditary monarchy does not make sense (by 79% to 21%), most monarchists believe that it does (by a slightly tighter margin of 66% to 34%). Of those who think Britain should keep the monarchy, the main reasons selected from a list provided were that it is an important part of what makes up British identity (41%) and that it is good for tourism (39%). A quarter said the monarchy provides continuity within Britain, despite which party is in government, and that charitable and other good works from the Royal Family are important (25% and 24% respectively).  

The public were also asked to decide which of a list of possible functions of the Royal family they thought were important or not. Three in four (73%) perceived representing the UK at home and abroad as an important function, followed by around two-thirds who said uniting the people despite their political, economic and class differences and maintaining the continuity of British traditions whichever party is in government are important functions (68% and 66% respectively). 

Preserving the class system in Britain and distracting people from the real problems affecting the country were perceived as the least important functions listed for the Royal family (both 33%). 

Gideon Skinner, head of political research at Ipsos, said:

A number of Britons – and not just younger people – would like to see the monarchy modernised to reflect wider changes in Britain, but back at the turn of the century, calls for reform were even more widespread – which may reflect changes to the monarchy over the last 25 years or so. Overall, most Britons remain supporters of the institution, with its role as a central part of British identity providing continuity with the past and uniting people despite their differences an important reason for that, alongside its function representing the UK and benefits for tourism.

Technical note

These data are from three representative quota samples interviewed by Ipsos in Great Britain:

• A sample of 2,143 adults aged 18-75 were interviewed on the online Omnibus 21st-24th April 2023  
• A sample of 1,079 adults aged 18-75 were interviewed on the online Omnibus 31st March – 1st April 2023.  The question asking whether a hereditary monarchy makes sense in a modern democracy and whether Britain should keep it was split-sampled so that half received an introduction line and half did not; the results showed this made little difference to the overall answers.
• A sample of 1,008 adults aged 18+ were interviewed on the CATI Omnibus 5th-11th April 2023. 

Data are weighted to match the profile of the population. All polls are subject to a wide range of potential sources of error.