Scottish Social Attitudes survey 2021/22: attitudes data

Key Findings

Attitudes to Government and the Scottish Parliament

• Two-thirds (66%) of people in Scotland trust the Scottish Government to work in Scotland's best interests, compared with 22% who trust the UK Government to do so
• People in Scotland were more likely to trust the Scottish Government (48%) and their local council (31%) to make fair decisions than the UK Government (15%)
• Just under 6 in 10 (58%) people thought the Scottish Government was good at listening to people before it made decisions, compared with just over 4 in 10 (41%) who thought this of their local council and just under 2 in 10 (18%) who thought this of the UK Government
• The majority of people in Scotland thought the Scottish Parliament was giving Scotland a stronger voice in the UK (64%), with only 7% thinking it was giving Scotland a weaker voice
• Similarly, 63% of Scots thought the Scottish Parliament was giving ordinary people more say in how Scotland is governed, compared with 5% of people who thought it was giving them less say
• Just under 6 in 10 people in Scotland (58%) thought that the Scottish Government has the most influence over the way Scotland is run, compared with just over 3 in 10 (32%) who thought the UK Government did so
• Three-quarters (75%) of people in Scotland thought the Scottish Government ought to have the most influence over the way Scotland is run, compared with 14% who thought the UK Government should

Views on level of tax and spend and government priorities

• The majority of people in Scotland (64%) thought the level of taxation and spending on health, education and social benefits should be increased, 32% thought the level of taxation and spending should stay the same and 3% thought it should decrease
• Most people (68%) agreed that income should be redistributed from the better-off to those who are less well-off, while 16% disagreed
• Asked to choose what they thought the Scottish Government's highest priority should be, the three priorities selected most often were: improve standards of education (21%), reduce inequality (19%) and improve the economy (18%)

Views on the National Health Service in Scotland

• Over half (54%) of people in Scotland were satisfied with the way the NHS is run, compared with 28% who said they were dissatisfied
• Despite over half of people saying they were satisfied with the way the NHS is run, the majority of people (66%) thought the standard of the health service had fallen in the previous 12 months, only 6% thought the standard had increased and 23% thought it had stayed the same
• Of those who thought the standard of the health service had fallen, 28% thought this was the result of UK Government policies, 24% thought it was the result of Scottish Govenrment policies, and 40% cited 'some other reason'
• Of those who thought the standard of the health service had increased, 3% thought UK Government policies were responsible for this shift, 60% thought Scottish Government policies were responsible, and 33% cited 'some other reason' as the cause

Views on the Economy and Standard of Living in Scotland

• More people thought that the Scottish economy had got weaker in the previous 12 months (66%) than thought it had got stronger (7%), and 21% thought it had stayed the same.
• More people thought that the standard of living had fallen (63%) than thought it had increased (8%), while 27% thought it had stayed the same
• Of those who thought the economy had grown weaker in the past 12 months, 31% thought this was mainly the result of UK Government policies, 25% thought it was mainly the result of Scottish Government polcies and 33% cited 'some other reason' as being responsible. Of those who thought the standard of living had fallen, 45% thought the UK Government's policies were mainly responsible, 17% thought that Scottish Government policies were mainly responsible, and 31% cited 'some other reason' as causing the change
• Of those who thought the economy had grown stronger in the previous 12 months, 10% thought UK Government policies were mainly responsible for this change, 45% thought Scottish Government policies were mainly responsible, and 36% said it was the result of 'some other reason'. Of those who thought the standard of living had increased over the same period, 21% thought the UK Government's policies were mainly responsible, 28% thought the Scottish Government's policies were mainly responsible, and 33% cited 'some other reason'

Political Engagement and levels of social trust

• A large majority thought it important to vote in Scottish Parliament elections (98%), local council elections (95%) and UK Government elections (92%)
• The majority of people in Scotland (61%) thought that, in general, 'most people can be trusted', while 37% of people thought that 'you can't be too careful in dealing with people'
• Just under four-fifths of people (79%) agreed that there were people in their area they could 'turn to for advice and support', compared with 8% of people who disagreed that this was the case