6 in 10 expect Labour to lose councillors at these elections, and half of Londoners are considering voting for the Greens.

Poll-in-1 with @keiranpedley ⛳

congrats, Alan!

In a surprise government policy change, schools will be forced to ban smartphones. Over 56% of Britons support banning mobile phones in schools altogether (Jan 2026).

And banning phones in schools receives cross-party support:

60% Reform UK voters
59% Labour voters,
62% Conservative voters

Stamer retains his March lead ahead of Farage and Badenoch, on who Brits think would be the most capable Prime Minister.

He’s down -1 since March 2026. There’s been no change for Farage, whilst Badenoch is up +4.

NEW headline voting intention from Ipsos

📊Reform UK +6 point lead over Labour – down from +7 in March, +8 in Jan 2026 and +15 in Nov 2025

📊Lib Dems are up +5 since March

📊Labour and Conservatives are now both on 19% - a drop for Labour from March (-2) and an increase for the Conservatives (+2)

Public opinion hardens against Iran war as economic concerns persist New polling data from Ipsos in the UK, conducted 3-7 April 2026 (ahead of the temporary ceasefire), reveals the latest picture in British public opinion towards the conflict between the US, Israel, and Iran and its consequences.

8 in 10 (86%) Brits are concerned about fuel/energy prices as a result of the US/Israel-Iran conflict.

57% are very concerned (+8ppts since March) 👇

UK polling update chart for 12 April 2026

🇬🇧 UK Poll of Polls: 12 April 2026

26% ➡️ Reform
19% 🌳 Conservative
18% 🌹 Labour
15% 🍃 Green
11% 🐥 Lib Dem
6% 👽 Other
3% ✖️ SNP

It's really not looking good for Orban

SNP extends lead while Scottish Labour support slumps, poll shows The SNP remains set to be the largest party at Holyrood

Today's @ipsosinscotland.bsky.social poll finds the largest SNP constituency vote lead of any BPC research agency since Nicola Sturgeon's resignation, as SNP support rises to its highest level in over two years.

I'll be discussing this, and more, with @holyroodsources.bsky.social this afternoon.

What Worries the World – March 2026 Conducted monthly in 30 countries among around 20,000 adults for over a decade, the Ipsos What Worries the World study offers an exceptional snapshot of world opinion on pressing global issues.

More on What Worries Hungary and the World: www.ipsos.com/en/what-worr...

But that doesn't mean populism: only 41% want a strong leader to break the rules. And last year Hungarians were hopeful for 2026 - 77% expected this year to be better. Does that say anything about the outcome of the election, if they go ahead of course? This weekend will tell.

Strong broken system feelings: 71% agree society is broken, 75% think the economy is rigged. And an anti-system mood: with 76% saying Hungary is going in the wrong direction, 71% say a strong leader is needed to take the country back from the rich and powerful.

The state of polls for this weekend's (tbc) election in Hungary is WILD. Pick your sponsor/winner. I've been away from E Europe for too long and had almost forgotten about government sponsored polls. But there are a few things from @ipsosgroup.bsky.social we know about Hungary:

Half of Brits (48%) support issuing more licenses for companies to drill new wells for oil and gas in the North Sea.

Support is highest amongst Reform UK and Conservative voters 👉 https://bit.ly/4c3ucEm

9 in 10 (89%) are concerned about the impact of the cost of living over the next six months on the country as a whole👉 https://www.express.co.uk/latest/cost-of-living

Get monthly round-ups of our latest politics and public services insights delivered straight to your inbox 📧👉 https://bit.ly/ipsos-pulse-check

What's something that experts/practitioners in your field universally agree upon, but that remains a "hot take" among funders?

A probability sample of 1000 can give you a high level of accuracy when measuring public opinion.

Flexible voting pilots at local elections May’s local elections will see a number of pilots of different forms of ‘flexible voting’. These are intended to test whether giving people a greater range of options for how they cast their ballots increases participation and satisfaction with the voting process without raising costs unduly. The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government sent a prospectus for the scheme to councils in August setting out four arrangements that could be piloted: allowing voters to cast their ballot at any polling station in their local authority area; creating central polling hubs in places such as shopping centres or railway stations; running mobile polling stations that might go, for example, to care homes, universities, or community centres; and early in-person voting at selected venues before polling day. After consideration of applications from councils to take part, ministers announced in March that four pilots would go forward in May. These cover two of the four possible arrangements that had been mooted: Cambridge, North Hertfordshire, and Tunbridge Wells will pilot early voting at selected voting hubs; Milton Keynes will pilot on-the-day voting hubs. For...

Did you know that the government is trialling 'flexible voting' in some parts of the country in May’s local elections?

These will give people more options about where they can vote and test early in-person voting.

Read more in Monitor 92 👉 www.ucl.ac.uk/social-histo....

Top issues for Brits (March 26)

1️⃣ Immigration 37% (-4 since Feb 26)

2️⃣ Economy 34% (+2 since Feb 26)

3️⃣ Defence/Foreign affairs/International terrorism 31% (+16 since Feb 26)

👉 bit.ly/4sz0vSR

We are seeing economic concerns similar to the first year of the Russian invasion of Ukraine
The difference to Ukraine is fewer are concerned about themselves personally, though still 1 in 2 are. Data www.ipsos.com/en-uk/over-8...

Clarity on support for energy bills will be crucial. We're already seeing the impact of the war in Iran on economic anxiety in our @ipsosintheuk.bsky.social data.
84% concerned about the impact on the price of fuel/energy
83% concerned about the impact on the UK economy

The US and UK's diverging views on Iran is yet another strain on the 'special relationship'. But it's not purely No 10 vs White House. The British public are more likely to disapprove of strikes than Americans, though support is still weak in the US as well.

3. On the other hand @zackpolanski.bsky.social is liked compared w/ Starmer (hey, who isn’t these days), and among supporters he has excellent satisfaction ratings, comparable to Farage. But as he becomes better known, & scrutinised, undecided's are breaking both for & against (current net positive)

2. Young people are less likely to be registered to vote. The Greens need to mobilise resources across several seats, before the registration deadline, and again before the election, in a likely low turnout election (35% in London in 2022, lower than that in their target seats).

1. Greens draw support from young people. Who don't vote in large numbers. But Green support among older voters hasn’t moved much since the general election. Meaning they need to rally enough 35-54s that want to send a signal to Labour, and get as many under 35s registered and voting.

A few thoughts on the Greens and the upcoming locals. Up 5pts in the March @ipsosintheuk.bsky.social Voting Intention, and with elections that were almost designed for them to do well, it should be a walk in the park. But they have some structural challenges to overcome:

Labour supporters most satisfied with the way Starmer is doing his job as PM (net +22).

Reform UK supporters are least satisfied (net -89), followed by Conservative supporters (net -75).

Much fewer people have a view on him. Which is normal, still relatively new leader, and a small party.

He does feature