Most trusted government in the EU and record support for independence – the Scottish Social Attitudes Survey in summary

Since 1999 the Scottish Social Attitudes Survey has been asking people across Scotland their views on how the country is run.

The 2015 survey was published last week. Here’s our summary:

Support for independence is at its highest level since the survey began.

Support for independence is at the highest level since the survey began 15 years ago, and support for the Scottish Parliament making all decisions for Scotland stands at 51 per cent.

Three-quarters of people in Scotland believe the Scottish Government ought to have the most influence over how Scotland is run.

Three in four people in Scotland (76 per cent) believe that the Scottish Government ought to have the most influence over the way Scotland is run. Just 14 per cent said the UK Government should have the most influence.

The Scottish Government is the most trusted government in the EU.

Almost three quarters (73 per cent) of people in Scotland trust the Scottish Government to act in Scotland’s best interests – compared to only 23 per cent who indicated they trust the Tory government at Westminster.

When compared to a study of trust in national governments across the EU, analysis shows that the Scottish Government is the most trusted in Europe – with significantly higher trust levels than the nearest challengers in Finland and Denmark, who trail behind Scotland at 60 per cent and 55 per cent respectively. The level of trust in the Scottish Government is more than twice the EU average of 31 per cent.

Independence would be good for the Scottish economy

The study has also found that 43 per cent of those surveyed think that independence would have a positive impact on the Scottish economy, compared to 37 per cent who say it would be negatively affected.

Satisfaction with NHS at a record high

Satisfaction with the way the NHS in Scotland is run stood at 62 per cent in 2015 – the highest level since the survey began.