Citizens’ Pulse: Just over half of low-income earners now confident about the future

Trust in the future among young people and people with low incomes has seen a clear decline this autumn compared to the earlier part of the year. According to the Citizens’ Pulse survey conducted by the Prime Minister's Office, this decline has been more pronounced among women than among men.

In the most recent survey, 54 per cent of low-income earners and 64 per cent of people aged 15 to 29 say they are at least fairly confident about the future.

When the results are examined by income bracket, high-income earners are the only group whose confidence about the future has remained more or less unchanged.

“Only slightly over half of all low-income earners are fairly or very confident about their future. This change is worrying in itself, as confidence about the future was already significantly weaker among low-income earners than among other population groups,” says Juho Jyrkiäinen, Chief Specialist at the Prime Minister’s Office.

In the November Citizens' Pulse survey, experiences of fairness in society perked up slightly since the early autumn, when there was a clear drop compared to the previous result. Around 69 per cent of respondents now consider society at least somewhat fair, while the corresponding figure in September was 64 per cent. That said, experiences of fairness on the whole are still weaker than in recent years.

This was the 50th round of the Citizens’ Pulse survey conducted by the Prime Minister’s Office. The first survey was conducted in spring 2020.

Fewer and fewer people consider sustainable public finances a key priority for the Government

Citizens’ views on the most important priorities for the Government have remained largely unchanged. Responses in this area continue to highlight the challenges of healthcare, education and public finances.

The perceived importance of sustainable public finances has fallen to 34 per cent, while the perceived importance of well-functioning healthcare has increased slightly, with 65 per cent of respondents now highlighting it as a key theme.
Trust in the institutions of society has largely remained stable over the course of the autumn.
Trust in the Government has increased slightly compared to the situation in early autumn: 45 per cent now say they trust the Government, while the figure was at its lowest, 41 per cent, in September.
Support for receiving refugees from Ukraine has seen a slight decline during the autumn but remains relatively high at 68 per cent.
The 50th round of the Citizens’ Pulse survey was conducted between 8 and 13 November 2023. The Citizens’ Pulse survey examines citizens’ opinions on current issues and government activities and asks about their mood and expectations for the future. Statistics Finland is responsible for collecting the survey data.

Inquiries: Juho Jyrkiäinen, Chief Specialist, Prime Minister’s Office, tel. +358 295 160 181