Friday Poll: Happiness

What do you think when politicians talk about your happiness? Enlarge Image

Every Friday, Giles brings you the results of a topical poll commissioned by The Daily Politics.

Giles' weekly Poll Dancing slot has been such a hit, we've teamed up with Populus to bring you a weekly swathe of opinion on the issues that affect you.

So tune in on BBC Two on Fridays at noon, or watch anytime in broadband!

Latest Poll: Friday May 26th

Tory leader David Cameron has said there is more to life than making money, arguing that improving people's happiness is a key challenge for politicians.

And a recent survey suggests that Britain's falling birth rate is being fuelled by a generation who would rather have fun and live comfortably than have children.

But is this a political issue at all? And what do you make of it all? We put the following statements to 1,0012 voters, and asked whether they agreed or disagreed:

• Governments can't influence how happy I am.
• The country would be happier if there were less of a gap between rich and poor.
• If I worked less and spent more time with my family I would be happier.
• We'd all be happier if politicians stopped talking about happiness.

THE FRIDAY POLL Read the results in full [70 KB] Most computers will open this document automatically, but you may need Adobe Reader Download the reader here

What about you?

For the full results broken down by gender, age and social grouping, download the document in the box on the right. There's also a pop-up graph top right, or, if you just need the main results, here they are:

• On whether governments can influence our happiness, you were split more or less down the middle.
• 3 out of 4 of you said that the country would be happier if the poverty gap were narrower.
• A massive 82% of you would be happier if you spent more time with family and less at work.
• And two thirds of you would be happier if the politicians stopped talking about happiness.

Populus interviewed a random sample of 1,012 adults aged 18+ by telephone on May 24th & 25th 2006. Interviews were conducted across England and the results have been weighted to be representative of all English adults. Populus is a member of the British Polling Council and abides by its rules.

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