Tackling economic insecurity could be key to rebuilding trust in Scottish politics

The Scottish Parliament election is fast approaching. Meanwhile people in Scotland are continuing to face financial hardship. Families are struggling to make ends meet against a backdrop of feeling let down by politicians. Our economy and political systems are simply not working as they should. But the next Scottish Government has an opportunity to shift this public sentiment by accepting that changing the status quo is as possible as it is necessary.

Recent polling for JRF, part of a project shaped by the End Poverty Scotland Group (EPSG), shows that if politicians invest in changes that improve living standards for people in Scotland, they will in turn, see an improvement in people’s feelings towards our political system. People want to see, and most importantly, feel the impact of investment across many areas of our economy. They want to feel confident that they can cover the cost of essentials, have a home that is affordable and warm, and receive wages high enough to have a good standard of living. Yet the public are quickly losing confidence in politicians to make the improvements to living standards that people want to see. The next Scottish government must rebuild trust by listening to and acting on the priorities of people in Scotland.

People are worried about their economic security

In a stark wake up call, nearly half (47%) of adults in Scotland were feeling economically insecure. We count someone as being economically insecure if they either strongly or somewhat agreed that they were worried about their family’s economic security.

We also measured economic security using a number of questions covering respondents’ worries about their income, savings, debts, housing and work to identify people who are very economically insecure. We found that over 1 in 5 people in Scotland are very economically insecure, which chimes with 1 in 5 people in Scotland who are in relative poverty. Within this group nearly three quarters (72%) were also not confident that they could pay an unexpected cost or bill of £200 in the next 7 days and/or cover essential costs like food and energy. This feeling of deep insecurity was echoed by members of the End Poverty Scotland Group who spoke about the precarity they experience whilst balancing the high cost of essentials and unexpected expenses:

The reality dawns on me when I struggle to pay for my family’s daily needs like food, electricity with the increasing high tariff, especially during this winter season when we need to heat up our home more.

Sylvia, End Poverty Scotland Group

...when an unexpected demand hits... it feels like a direct threat to my safety and well being. I feel like the system blames you for life being unpredictable...

Zain, End Poverty Scotland Group

Some aspects of economic insecurity were more prevalent than others. Across all respondents:

• 46% were worried about their household’s income over the next 12 months
• around 2 in 5 (41%) were not satisfied with their savings
• 35% were worried about building up debt in the next 12 months.

While people are clearly worried about their own living standards, they are also aware of the impacts of the cost of living crisis on other families. Four in five (82%) people said that they agree or strongly agree that the cost of living is hitting some people in Scotland harder than others. This data is telling us that economic insecurity is pervasive within our communities.

With the majority (58%) of respondents saying that they believe the Scottish Government are responsible for improving the living standards of people in Scotland, this should be a wake-up call for political parties as they enter the election to commit. People in Scotland are struggling, they hold the Scottish Government responsible for fixing that, and they want to see action.

Politics can't afford inaction

People in Scotland are feeling let down by politicians and, frankly, feel that political and economic systems do not work to represent their priorities.

Overall, we found that nearly 2 in 5 (38%) people in Scotland are feeling politically disaffected when we include people’s feeling about political systems, their representatives, political parties and voting.

We asked a range of questions to respondents about their feelings towards politics. Looking at some of the individual questions that contribute to our definition of disaffection we found that:

• nearly 3 in 4 (73%) agreed that politicians care more about their party than the people they represent
• nearly 2 in 3 (64%) agreed that politicians do not listen to the concerns of people like them
• around 2 in 5 (43%) disagreed that they trust that politicians want to improve the lives of people like them
• around 2 in 5 (43%) did not see political decisions having a positive impact in their community.

Although these findings show that levels of trust in our political system are low, people had a more positive relationship to voting and local politicians. For example, when we asked people if they thought their vote makes a difference in their community, only 1 in 4 people disagreed. Also, more people agreed with the statement (44%) that there were hardworking politicians in their area than disagreed (21%).

Members of the EPSG did however speak about not seeing or feeling the benefit of government policy choices in their communities.

I do not feel that politicians and political parties represent the priorities of the people in their communities...

Laura, End Poverty Scotland Group

Laura went on to describe the levels of poverty and lack of services within her local area, including increasing food bank use and lack of funding for local services, and how this linked to feelings about politics:

...this causes people of the local area to have a low quality of life, from young to old... There’s rises in council tax, but services are being cut…

Laura

People are feeling that there is a disconnection between political decisions that are made by government and the impact, or lack of, that is felt by communities.

The current focus of [politicians] often appears misaligned... prioritising policy relevance... over making a meaningful difference at the community level.

Zain

On top of that, there is a perception that groups who are most at risk of experiencing poverty and hardship are being targeted by cuts to existing support. This sentiment is not surprising when we see that 56% of respondents agreed that politicians prioritise the concerns of better-off people within society.

It seems [that] whenever there is a problem that is the first thing government starts to do, target pensioners, disabled people, people on the lowest incomes.

Andrew, End Poverty Scotland Group

Economic insecurity and political disaffection go hand in hand

People who are more economically insecure are more likely to feel let down by political systems. Our findings show that 2 in 5 (41%) people who are feeling economically insecure are also politically disaffected. For families who are very economically insecure, this relationship is magnified further, with just over half of respondents in this group also feeling politically disaffected, compared to around 1 in 3 people who are not very economically insecure.

People who are economically insecure and politically disaffected are slightly less likely to vote and slightly more likely to not know who to vote for. One in ten people who are both economically insecure and politically disaffected said they definitely would not vote, and a further 4% were very unlikely to vote. Of people who are both feeling economically insecure and politically disaffected, 16% said that they were undecided on who they were going to vote for in the 2026 Scottish Parliament election.

Yet politicians have an opportunity to change how people are feeling by getting today’s decisions right. We asked people what would improve their economic security and their feelings about politics in Scotland. When asked to select the top 3 solutions that would make them feel more economically secure, people who were feeling both economically insecure and politically disaffected were most likely to say:

• lower cost of essentials (77%)
• higher pay (43%)
• improved pension or retirement savings (30%).

These were also reflected by the EPSG when asked what would best support them to feel more economically secure, as well as what they would like to see politicians and government do differently to improve living standards in Scotland.

Cheaper living costs would make people feel more secure, like energy bills, food prices, rents and a more compassionate benefits system... It’s a rigged game... If you are full-time in a job that should be enough to provide for your family. So [I’d like to see] better pay and conditions.

Andrew

Similarly, politicians can improve people’s feeling about politics in Scotland. The high levels of disaffection we are seeing across society is not inevitable or fixed, but instead is the continuation of the status quo. We asked people about the extent to which delivering a range of policy solutions would improve or worsen their feelings about politics in Scotland. For people who were both politically disaffected and economically insecure, we found a significant improvement in people’s attitude towards Scottish politics in relation to a range of policies, with the highest levels of support for:

• reducing energy bills (85%)
• improving pay for the lowest paid workers (75%)
• providing more affordable and good quality social housing (73%).

I'd like to see more affordable social housing. Mid-market rent housing is nice but it's still not affordable for a lot of folk. There needs to be more social housing for bigger families... [and] they need to be maintained so much better… If politicians and government prioritised all these things then I would definitely have more faith and trust in them.

Laura

Although the current situation is bleak for people who are feeling economically insecure and politically disaffected, this analysis tells us that there is a critical opportunity for politicians to tackle 2 issues at once. Taking action to improve living standards and investing in communities in Scotland is not only important for increasing families’ economic security, but it is also crucial for rebuilding trust within our political systems.

Undecided voters can be won if politics commits to economic change

In November 2025, just over 1 in 10 respondents who were feeling economically insecure were still unsure who to vote for in the 2026 Scottish Parliament election.

Undecided voters are also more likely to be politically disaffected, half (51%) compared to 36% for all respondents. We see very low levels of trust with around a half (52%) of undecided voters disagreeing that they trust that politicians want to improve the lives of people like them.

Despite this, half of undecided voters (51%) believe that the Scottish Government are responsible for improving the living standards of people in Scotland, and around half (53%) said that they were still likely to vote in the 2026 election. Political parties still have a chance to make commitments that will win over undecided voters before May 2026. We found that there is ample opportunity for political parties to change the way that people feel about politics in Scotland by committing to policies that improve living standards and economic security.

The priorities of undecided voters were similar to those of all respondents, with lower costs of essentials (57%), higher pay (39%) and improved pension or retirement savings (18%) being solutions that would improve their feelings of security. We also see slightly more undecided respondents selecting work-related solutions like improving conditions and hours at work.

Political parties also have the scope for improving undecided voters feeling about politics in Scotland by making bold political choices that will improve people’s living conditions. The top 3 solutions selected as improving undecided voters’ feelings about politics in Scotland were: reducing the cost of energy bills (72%), improving pay for the lowest paid workers (63%) and providing more affordable and good-quality social housing (58%).

Conclusion

Economic insecurity is prevalent in Scotland. Many people are worried about their income, savings and debt and, most shockingly, those at the sharpest end of insecurity are not confident they can cover essential costs like food and energy.

On top of this, there is an underlying sentiment that political systems are not working as they should. Levels of trust are low, people do not feel heard and are not seeing the benefit of political decisions in their communities.

Our findings tell us that there is a relationship between economic insecurity and political disaffection, and this relationship is even stronger for those who are very economically insecure.

But it doesn’t have to be this way. Critically, people are not withdrawing from politics completely. We found that people had a more positive attitude towards voting and the difference that their vote can make in their community. The majority of people feeling both economically insecure and politically disaffected are intending to vote in the Scottish election this year, but around 16% remain undecided on who they will vote for.

Politicians must consider these findings carefully, because getting these decisions right matters for improving the lives of families in Scotland and improving the relationship people have with our political systems. Among the economically insecure, politically disaffected and undecided voter groups, we have consistently found that people want to see:

• lower costs of essentials, like energy
• higher pay for the lowest-paid workers
• investment in affordable and good quality social housing.

Action across these areas is what people feel will most improve their economic security and feelings towards politics in Scotland and, importantly, has the potential to win the support of undecided voters. The upcoming election provides a key opportunity for politicians to show people in Scotland they are listening and taking action. As Sylvia, from the EPSG said:

Making these necessary changes will make it easier for [people to] have trust in the system... and feel included in decisions that concern their wellbeing.

Sylvia

The time for minor adjustments has passed. We must reshape our economic and political systems with people’s economic wellbeing at the centre.

Method note

This project has been shaped throughout by the End Poverty Scotland Group and includes their words, gathered through qualitative diary entries, throughout. Survey data was collected on behalf of JRF by the Diffley Partnership in November 2025 reaching a representative sample of 3,052 adults (16+) in Scotland.

Feeling economically insecure is strongly or somewhat agreeing to the statement 'I am worried about me and my family’s economic security' (strongly agree to strongly disagree)

Very economically insecure is based on people’s mean response across the following questions (strongly agree to strongly disagree):

• I am worried about me and my family’s economic security.
• I am worried about my household’s income over the next 12 months.
• I am worried that I might have to move out of my current home in the next 12 months, because I cannot afford to cover my housing costs.
• I am worried about keeping my job/ I am worried about my ability to get a job (based on employment status)
• I am worried about my current levels of debt.
• I am worried about building up debt in the next 12 months.
• I am generally satisfied with the amount of savings I have (reverse coded).
• I am confident that I will have a decent standard of living in old age (reverse coded).

Politically disaffected is based on people’s mean response across the following questions (strongly agree to strongly disagree):

• How I vote makes a difference to my life.
• How I vote makes a difference to my community.
• I see positive changes in my community due to political decisions.
• There are politicians who work hard in my area.
• Politicians want to do the right thing, but systems make it hard for them.
• Politicians do not listen to concerns of people like me (reverse coded).
• Politicians care more about their party than the people they represent.
• Even when politicians change, I see no progress (reverse coded).
• Politicians prioritise the concerns of better off people within society (reverse coded).
• I trust that politicians want to improve the lives of people like me.