One in four employed Britons concerned they might lose their job

Our latest monthly barometer on British public opinion and voting intentions reveals high levels of job insecurity for Britons, continuing strong public support for the use of local lockdowns to tackle COVID-19 outbreaks, and a majority of the public backing the reopening of schools in September, even if it means other non-essential places would have to close.

Other key findings from Kantar’s research, which took place between 6 and 10 August, include:

• Job insecurity remains high, with 42% (+5 vs July*) of those working believing their job is less safe than it was 12 months ago. 43% (-2) of those working say their job security is much the same as 12 months ago.  
• Looking to the future, two thirds (65%, no change) of those working think that their job is very/somewhat secure in the period to the end of 2020, with 26% (-1) saying it is not at all/not very secure.
• 82% (+1) of people approve or strongly approve of the government using local lockdowns to tackle outbreaks of coronavirus, and 69% (-2) think that they will be fairly/very effective. However, people aged 25-34 are most likely to say that they think local lockdowns will be very/fairly ineffective at 30%, compared to 20% for the population as a whole.
• There has been a drop in the proportion of Britons who think that the pace at which the government is adjusting restrictions to everyday life is a bit or much too fast, from 47% in July to 33% in August. 25% now think it is a bit/much too slow, up from 19%. 31% think the government have got it about right (+5).
• 67% of people agree or strongly agree that it is important that schools open again fully in September, and
• 60% of people agree or strongly agree that the government should prioritise re-opening schools even if this means restaurants, pubs or other non-essential shops would have to close.
• Four in ten (41%, no change) say they ‘definitely’ plan to get vaccinated if a coronavirus is developed, compared to 26% (-2) who say ‘probably’.

More detailed analysis on themes

1. Economic impacts and expectations

• As the Pfizer vaccine is rolled out across the UK to the most vulnerable population groups, the stated likelihood to be vaccinated remains lower than in the summer: 65% say they will definitely or probably get the vaccine, compared to 69% in July 2020. However, 73% of people aged 65 and over say they would definitely plan to get a vaccine.

  Of the 23% of people who say they would probably/definitely not plan to get a vaccine, the main reasons given were:

  • “I have concerns about safety/there is not enough evidence yet about safety”, by 27% of the group who say they do not plan to be vaccinated. Women in this group are more concerned than men about safety: 36% vs 17%
  • “I want more information about the vaccines before I decide” by 13% of people who do not plan to be vaccinated. Women in this group also more likely to say this than men: 18% vs 8%.
  • “I don’t trust the intentions of those creating vaccines” by 11% of those who do not plan to be vaccinated. People aged 18-24 are more likely to give this as their main reasons for not planning to get a vaccine: 21%, vs 9% of those aged 25+.

2. Perceptions of actions and interventions to tackle COVID-19 

As British society experiences changing lockdown restrictions, new challenges are emerging for longer-term initiatives for tackling COVID-19:

• • 45% (-2) think that the government are placing too much emphasis on protecting the country’s economy and not enough on protecting people’s health, compared to 14% (-1) who think the emphasis is too much on health over economy. 25% think they have got the balance about right (no change).
  • Over three in four people (76%, -6) are very/fairly concerned that there will be a second wave of coronavirus infections in the UK.
  • Public perception of how the UK government is handling the crisis remains poor, with over half of people (56%, +3) stating that they think the government is handling the coronavirus outbreak very/fairly poorly.
  • Fewer than four in ten (39%, no change) think that the government are handling it very/fairly well.
  • Less than half (46%, -4) of the public now rate the government’s communication of information about COVID-19 as very/fairly good.
  • 55% of people agree/strongly agree that the government should stockpile food and medicine in preparation for a potential second wave of coronavirus infections.

3. Voting intentions

• Conservative 42% (-3 vs July 2020)
• Labour 35% (nc)
• Liberal Democrats 8% (-1)
• SNP 6% (+1)
• Green 3% (+1)
• The Brexit Party 3% (+1)
• UKIP 1% (nc)
• Plaid Cymru 1% (nc)
• Other 1% (nc)

*A representative sample of 1,131 adults in Great Britain were interviewed between 9 and 13 July. All interviews were conducted as online self-completion with Kantar online access panel as the main sample source. More information can be found here.

4. Methodological information

A total of 1,161 interviews were conducted online among adults living in Great Britain between 6th and 10th August 2020. All interviews were conducted as online self-completion. 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.