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Post-election pick up
The latest Deloitte/MORI Delivery Index shows a rise in optimism over the economy and public services after the General Election, continuing the steady upward trend since 2003.? For the first time since May 2002, people are more positive than negative about the government’s long-term economic policies, and the proportion of optimists has risen from 43% in February to 47% after the election.
The third Labour victory also sees a rise in optimism about public services.? Those who think that “in the long term, this government’s policies will improve the state of Britain’s public services”, rose from 39% pre-election to 43% in May, compared with 45% who disagree.
Looking at the Government’s main priorities, the NHS and public transport both saw rises in public optimism.? Thirty-seven per cent expect the NHS to get better over the next few years, up five points from 32% in February (28% expect it to get worse), and those expecting public transport to improve rose from 24% to 28% (23% expect it to get worse).? The public remain most optimistic about the quality of education, with 35% expecting it to get better and 23% expecting it to get worse, while the balance of opinion about the future of policing is also just positive (27% expect the way their area is policed to get better, while 22% expect it to get worse).? Only on the environment are people negative.?? A quarter (26%) of the British public expects the quality of the environment to improve over the next few years, compared with 38% who think it will get worse.
Ben Page, Director of MORI Social Research Institute, said “The Government will be pleased to see this post-election boost, and will be hoping that this is a sign that the ‘perception gap’ is finally beginning to narrow, as the public begins to notice some of the actual improvements that are happening in public services.? However, we would expect to see some post-election bounce, and the true test will be whether this trend continues in future waves.”
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Mike Kerr, Deloitte's Industry Leader Government & Public Sector, said "The significant increase in expenditure in health and education may finally be paying off.? The survey suggests that the public are increasingly optimistic about the impact of the investment.? Government departments and local authorities are now increasingly focussed on achieving productivity improvements to deliver the next phase of improvements in public services."
Technical Details
The Deloitte/MORI Delivery Index is a regular tracking survey focusing on general attitudes on the prospects for the economy and public services in Britain, as well as expectations on the five key public service areas, health, education, policing, public transport and the environment.
MORI interviewed 975 adults aged 18+ by telephone, between 13-15 May 2005.? Results are weighted to the correct profile of the British population.
The next Deloitte/MORI Delivery Index will be carried out in September.
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