The economy is the Scottish people’s number one priority according to an official new survey ranking well ahead of the NHS in Scotland
The economy and not healthcare should be the Scottish Government’s number one priority, according to an official new survey that showed 42 per cent of respondents believe economic prosperity ranks above the NHS.
Published earlier this week by the government, the Scottish Social Attitudes Survey (SSAS) traced views in 2023, the previous comparable study was last undertaken in 2019 since when trust in the Scottish Government has plummeted.
It has already made headlines after it showed that for the first time less than 50 per cent of people felt the Scottish Government was working in the best long-term interests of the country.
The analysis shows the huge impact of the cost of living crisis – 83 per cent believe the standard of living has fallen, 42 per cent think the economy should be the government’s top priority and half think income should be redistributed.
Now it has thrown up some other interesting numbers including how the NHS plays second fiddle to the economy for many, and that dissatisfaction with the NHS stood at 53 per cent.
When people were asked to choose what the Scottish Government’s highest priority should be from a list of options the most popular answer “by far” was to “improve the economy” it rose from 23 per cent in 2019 to 42 per cent in 2023.
The majority of people – 83 per cent – thought the general standard of living had fallen over the previous year, which is an increase from 2019 when 50 per cent of respondents thought the standard of living had fallen.
Just 23 per cent of people said they were satisfied with the way in which the NHS runs compared to 52 per cent who were dissatisfied.
The NHS satisfaction has fallen – 69 per cent of people thought the standard of the health service had dropped over the previous 12 months to 2023, in 2019 that figure was 45 per cent.
Yet 47 per cent of respondents thought the government should increase taxes and spend more on health, education, and social benefits – that is down from 2019 when 55 per cent of people wanted to see hikes for reinvestment in services.
Finally, it does not come as a surprise that with the cost of living crisis exactly half of people agreed that the government should redistribute income from the better-off to those who are less well-off a further 23 per cent disagreed.
