Rising bills – not constitution – key concern for voters, poll finds

The cost-of-living crisis was voters’ main concern as they headed to the polls yesterday, a survey has found.

Three quarters of voters in a poll commissioned by the Trades Union Congress said responding to higher bills was a priority for them.

Second on the list was the NHS, with 60 per cent of people saying this was a major issue.

General secretary of the Scottish Trades Union Congress, Roz Foyer, called for “sustained investment” from government to local authorities, to help councils support struggling residents.

She said: “These elections should be a wake-up call to all levels of government – local, Scottish and UK – that workers throughout the country need urgent and sustained help in the face of this brutal attack on their living standards.”

A fifth of respondents said public services and the environment were top issues, while one in six named housing as key.

A fifth said Brexit continued to influence their decision, while 14 per cent named the constitution more broadly.

The survey involved 2,500 adults from across Great Britain.

Results of yesterday’s council elections have started to come in today after the count started in Scotland this morning.

Final results are not expected until late afternoon and into the evening, but so far the SNP is holding steady and the Conservatives are losing the ground they gained in 2017.

Labour, the Lib Dems and the Greens have all made gains so far.

In England, where counts started overnight, Labour has taken control of previously Conservative-dominated councils in London but have seen little progress elsewhere in the country.