Britain Barometer April 2022

The Britain Barometer is our regular polling of public opinion in Britain.  We cover a range of topics including political views and voting intentions, the economy, government policies and emerging issues important to the British public.

14 April 2022, London – Kantar Public publishes its latest barometer on British public opinion and voting intentions, which reveals that Britons are pessimistic about the state of the economy, and a record number are finding it harder to meet their monthly budget compared to a year ago. Britons remain supportive of the UK government taking measures to support Ukraine.

Key findings from Kantar Public’s research, which took place between 7 and 11 April, include:

• Six in ten Britons (62%) think the British economy is doing worse than it was a year ago (+10 vs March 2022).
• A record number of Britons are finding it harder to meet their monthly household budget than a year ago. 61% of Britons are finding it harder to meet their monthly budget (+7 vs March 2022) - this is the highest level recorded since August 2011, when this question was first asked.
• 80% of Britons think the government has handled the rising cost of living very/fairly poorly.
• Britons remain supportive of the UK government taking measures to support Ukraine:
  • Three quarters of Britons (74%) support increasing sanctions against Russia and individuals associated with the Russian government.
  • 74% of Britons would support the UK government supporting international efforts to prosecute the Russian government and individuals in relation to war crimes committed in Ukraine.
  • 66% (+8 vs March 2022) of Britons strongly/somewhat support making it easier for refugees from Ukraine to come to Britain.
  • 61% (+6) of Britons strongly/somewhat support the UK government providing weapons to Ukraine.

More detailed analysis on themes

1. Household-level economic situation

A record number of Britons are finding it harder to meet their monthly household budget compared to a year ago.

• Six in ten Britons (62%) think the British economy is doing worse than it was a year ago (+10 vs March 2022). One in four (26%) think it is doing much the same (-9) but only 13% think it is doing better (nc).
• 44% think that the British economy will be doing worse than it is now in a years’ time (+2 vs March 2022), 14% think it will be doing better (-2) while 42% think it will be doing much the same as it is now (nc).
• Six in ten Britons (61%) are finding it harder to meet their monthly household budget than a year ago (+7 vs March 2022). This is the highest level recorded since August 2011, when this question was first asked.
• Among those who report that it is harder to meet their household budget, half (54%) cite the rising cost of energy bills as the main reason (+3 vs March 2022) while 14% attribute it to the rising cost of food (-4).
• 20% of Britons are behind with some or all of their bills (+1 vs March 2022) while 73% are up to date with all of their bills (-2).
• 80% of Britons think the government has handled the rising cost of living very/fairly poorly. Only 17% think the government has handled the issue very/fairly well. Only 3% were not sure.
• 23% of working Britons believe their job is less secure than it was a year ago (+2 vs March 2022). Only 16% believe their job is more secure than it was a year ago (+1), although 54% believe their job security is much the same as it was (+1).

2. The War in Ukraine 

When thinking about the war in Ukraine, Britons support the UK government taking measures to support Ukraine:

• Three quarters of Britons (74%) strongly/somewhat support increasing sanctions against Russia and individuals associated with the Russian government, while only 6% strongly/somewhat oppose. 20% Neither support nor oppose this measure.
• 74% of Britons would support the UK government supporting international efforts to prosecute the Russian government and individuals in relation to war crimes committed in Ukraine. 20% neither support nor oppose. Just 5% oppose this.
• 66% (+8 vs March 2022) of Britons strongly/somewhat support making it easier for refugees from Ukraine to come to Britain.11% oppose this measure (-4), while 24% neither support nor oppose (-2).
• 61% (+6) of Britons strongly/somewhat support the UK government providing weapons to Ukraine.13% strongly/somewhat oppose (-2). 26% neither support nor oppose this measure (-3).
• Half of Britons (47%) think the government has handled the situation in Ukraine very/fairly well. 38% think the government has handled the situation very/fairly poorly. 15% are not sure.

Britons continue to think that Boris Johnson would do a better job than Keir Starmer at standing up to Russia, and leading Britain if military action was needed. However, a plurality still believes neither Boris Johnson nor Keir Starmer is best placed to do this.

Q: Which of these leaders do you think would be best at…

3. Policy Priorities

When asked about the three most important priorities for the UK government if it is to improve public life in the UK, Britons cite the following:

• Reducing the cost of living (56%,+6 vs March 2022).
• Investing more in NHS capacity (32%).
• Growing the UK’s economy (23%,-1).
• Making housing more affordable (25%, +2).

4. Party Leaders Rating

When it comes to party leaders, a plurality believes neither Boris Johnson nor Keir Starmer is best placed to tackle the UK’s biggest policy challenges. A large proportion simply don’t know who would be better, although their number is gradually decreasing.

Britons tend to think Keir Starmer would do a better job than Boris Johnson at: reducing the cost of living, improving the economy, reducing serious crime, managing the NHS, tackling climate change, telling the truth and making decisions in the best interest of the general public.

With respect to managing the COVID-19 pandemic and Brexit, Britons are of the view that Boris Johnson would be better placed to deal with these challenges.

However, the difference between the two is mostly in single figures. 

Q: Which of these leaders do you think would be best at…

5. Attitudes Towards COVID-19

Britons are evenly split on the government’s handling of the pandemic, while the number of Britons that think vaccines should be compulsory for all adults continues to decrease:

• Half of Britons (48%) think the government has handled the COVID-19 pandemic very/fairly well. 47% think the government has handled the pandemic very/fairly poorly.
• For the first time since we first reported this question in January 2021, more than half of Britons (55%) think that people should be allowed to choose for themselves whether to be vaccinated or not (+9 vs March 2022). The number of Britons who think vaccines should be compulsory for all adults has fallen to 38% (-9), this is the lowest figure we have recorded at this question.

6. Voting Intentions

• Lab 37% (+1 vs March 2022)
• Con 34% (-2)
• L Dem 11% (-1)
• Green 7% (+1)
• SNP 5% (+2)
• Reform UK (formerly Brexit party) 4% (+1)
• UKIP 2% (+1)
• Plaid Cymru 1% (+1)
• Other 1% (-1)

Methodological information

A total of 1,152 interviews were conducted online among adults living in Great Britain between the 7th and 11th April 2022. All interviews were conducted online using the Kantar Research Express. The Kantar online access panel was the main sample source.

The data was weighted to match population totals for age, gender, 2019 General Election voting patterns, 2016 EU referendum voting patterns, education, region, and likelihood to vote in the next General Election. Any use of this research must cite Kantar Public as the source.

This Britain Barometer was issued under our former global brand name: Kantar Public.