Scottish Social Attitudes Survey 2025: Core module

Key Points

The Scottish Social Attitudes Survey 2025 core module ran from 16 September to 11 November 2025.

Attitudes to government and the Scottish Parliament

• In 2025, 46% of people trusted the Scottish Government to work in Scotland’s best interests, in line with the 47% reported in 2023. Over the last ten years this has declined from 72% in 2015. Trust in the UK Government to act in Scotland’s best long-term interest remains lower than this at 18%, in line with 21% in 2023.
• Fewer than a quarter of people trusted the Scottish Government (23%), UK Government (11%) or their Local Council (13%) to make decisions that are fair to different groups of people. For the Scottish Government and Local Councils this has declined over time, while remaining above the level of the UK Government.
• Similarly, the percentage of respondents reporting that governments are good at listening to people’s views before taking decisions has declined over time. In 2025 for the Scottish Government this was 33%, for the UK Government 11%, and Local Councils 26%.
• 54% of respondents said that the Scottish Parliament gives Scotland a stronger voice in the UK (7% a weaker voice, 37% making no difference). 49% reported that the Scottish Parliament gives ordinary people more say in how Scotland is governed (5% less say, 43% makes no difference).

Views on government priorities, the health service, the general standard of living, and the economy

• ‘Improve the economy’ remains the most frequently selected top priority for the Scottish Government at 33% in 2025, although this is a decrease from 42% in 2023. Other frequently selected top priorities in 2025 include ‘improve people’s health’ (19%), ‘improve housing’ (15%) and ‘improve standards of education’ (10%).
• Respondents to the survey in 2025 remain more likely to be dissatisfied than satisfied (50% compared with 23%) with the way the National Health Service runs, as was the case in 2023. The percentage who were dissatisfied decreased, from 55% to 50%.
• Respondents in 2025 also remained more likely to think the standard of the health service had fallen (60%) in the past year than increased (7%). The percentage who thought standards had fallen decreased from 69% to 60% since 2023.
• Respondents in 2025 remained more likely to think that the general standard of living had fallen (77%) than increased (5%), although the percentage who thought it had fallen decreased from 83% to 77% since 2023.
• Respondents were more likely to think that the economy had got weaker over the last year (61%), than stronger (7%).

Tax, spending and redistribution

• As was the case in 2023, respondents in 2025 continued to prefer increasing taxes and spending (45%) or keeping tax and spending at the same level (39%), with a smaller proportion preferring a reduction in taxes and spending (12%).
• Similarly on redistribution, 45% of people agreed that the government should redistribute income from the better-off to those less well-off (27% disagree and 25% neither agree nor disagree).

Importance of voting

• As has been the case in previous years of the survey, a substantial majority of people still thought it was important to vote in elections to the Scottish Parliament (90%), UK Parliament (84%), and Local Councils (85%).

Trust and Democratic engagement

• Around half of respondents (53%) in 2025 said that they felt that ‘most people can be trusted’, while 45% said that they ‘can’t be too careful dealing with people’.
• In terms of ways in which people have engaged with political issues, the most commonly chosen option was signing a petition (48%), followed by contacting their local council (26%), and contacting their MP or MSP (25%).