Whichever party forms the next Government faces a major challenge in restoring battered public confidence and this is brought home forcefully in Golley Slater’s latest quarterly monitor - Dialect 2 - which tracks consumer opinion throughout the UK.

Published today, Dialect 2 revealed that the vast majority of people (over 2,000) questioned want a change in government with 71% of those in the Midlands, followed by London & South East and South West of England tying on 67%, and Yorkshire coming in third at 64%. People in Scotland are happier with their government than the rest of the UK as less than half population (48%) want a change in government.

Commenting on the report’s findings Golley Slater’s Chief Executive Chris Lovell said: “Many issues are exorcising the public’s minds and highlight the difficulties facing the new Prime Minister post-election. As you will see from the results, there are concerns across the spectrum of public services. The million dollar question is whether we are prepared to pay higher taxes for better public services. We put this question to respondents in our survey and the overwhelming majority were against this suggestion. Less than 27% would be willing to pay higher taxes for improved services. The loudest dissenters were those in the Midlands (61%), East Anglia (58%) and Yorkshire (56%). As consumers, we want it all, but don’t always want to foot the bill! This is a big challenge for the next government, particularly in the current economic climate.”

Summary of Dialect 2 (full report available from www.golleyslater.com/dialect.php)

Weak Government Policy: The majority of respondents do not believe that current government policy is addressing big challenges. Top of the list of concern is care for the elderly. The over 85 year old age group is predicted to increase from 1.33m (2.2% of the population) to 7m (8.2% of the population) by 2080. Faith in government policy to deal with growing elderly care needs stands at just 14.2% to 30% of respondents across the regions, with the Midlands having the least confidence at 14.2%%. By contrast, government is seen to give much greater attention to areas such as equality, ethnic minorities, equal opportunities and religious tolerance.

Failure to Improve Public Services: Despite a desire to see positive outcomes from a newly elected government, the majority of respondents do not believe there will be an improvement in public services. The most sceptical are those living in Scotland with 64% feeling there will not be a positive change, closely followed by Wales on 60% and the North West and Yorkshire tying on 56%. [The results for Wales and Scotland may be due to the fact that public services are devolved in these countries.]

Via EPR Network
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