Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1511356
JAMES DEBONO MALTATODAY Survey re- spondents are split between those who feel Budget 2024 has left them in the same posi- tion as before (30.4%) and those who have seen an improvement (29.8%) in their financial posi- tion. Only 13% of respondents re- plied that they were negative- ly impacted. But the budget is perceived differently by dif- ferent categories, with over- 65s, whose pensions have been boosted by a minimum of €15 a week, being the most likely to feel a positive impact on their life. In fact, among this catego- ry an absolute majority of 51% has seen a positive impact. But despite a substantial in- crease in children's allowances and a record COLA increase, the budget has not quelled dis- satisfaction among those aged 36-50, the age group which is most likely to include strug- gling families with dependent children in the middle of their careers. In fact, among this group only 15% have seen an improvement in their personal finances, while 16% think that they are worse off after the budget. A substantial 35% replied that their position has remained 'the same' while 32% replied don't know. Similar trends are exhibit- ed among those aged 16-35, among which 42% replied that their situation is unchanged, while 30% replied 'don't know.' The high percentage of 'don't knows' in both categories in an indication that many are still waiting to see how the budget measures actually play out in a reality marked by inflation. The politically strategic cat- egory of non-voters, amongst which 37% replied don't know is also in a wait and see mode. Therefore, Labour's chances of recovering support in this cat- egory also depend on whether inflation will continue eating away the increments included in the budget. 19 SURVEY maltatoday | SUNDAY • 12 NOVEMBER 2023 Pensioners most likely to view budget positively Finance Minister passes the budget test 2024 BUDGET 35 30 25 20 15 10 5 0 Positively Negatively No difference Don't know 45 40 35 30 25 20 15 10 5 0 PL PN No one How did the Budget affect you personally? Who do you trust more with managing the country's economy and finances? Age Gender Region Education 2022 Voters 55 50 45 40 35 30 25 20 15 10 5 0 16-35 36-50 51-65 65+ Positively Negatively No difference Don't know Age Gender Region Education 2022 Voters 70 60 50 40 30 20 10 0 16-35 36-50 51-65 65+ PL PN No one 35 30 25 20 15 10 5 0 Positively Negatively No difference Don't know 45 40 35 30 25 20 15 10 5 0 PL PN No one How did the Budget affect you personally? Who do you trust more with managing the country's economy and finances? Age Gender Region Education 2022 Voters 55 50 45 40 35 30 25 20 15 10 5 0 16-35 36-50 51-65 65+ Positively Negatively No difference Don't know Age Gender Region Education 2022 Voters 70 60 50 40 30 20 10 0 16-35 36-50 51-65 65+ 10 5 0 Positively Negatively No difference Don't know 45 40 35 30 25 20 15 10 5 0 PL PN No one Who do you trust more with managing the country's economy and finances? On a scale from 0 to 5, how do you rate the performance of the Finance Minister? Age Gender Region Education 2022 Voters 55 50 45 40 35 30 25 20 15 10 5 0 Northern North Harbour South Harbour South East West Gozo Positively Negatively No difference Don't know Age Gender Region Education 2022 Voters 70 60 50 40 30 20 10 0 North North Harbour South Harbour South East West Gozo PL PN No one 35 30 25 20 15 10 5 0 Positively Negatively No difference Don't know 45 40 35 30 25 20 15 10 5 0 PL PN No one How did the Budget affect you personally? Who do you trust more with managing the country's economy and finances? Age Gender Region Education 2022 Voters 55 50 45 40 35 30 25 20 15 10 5 0 PL PN Non Voters Positively Negatively No difference Don't know Age Gender Region Education 2022 Voters 70 60 50 40 30 20 How did the Budget affect you personally? How did the Budget affect you personally? Results by age How did the Budget affect you personally? Results by region How did the Budget affect you personally? Results by 2022 vote JAMES DEBONO CLYDE Caruana has passed his budget test with voters giving him an average score of 2.9 out of five. MaltaToday respondents were asked to rate Caruana's performance from 0 (lowest score) to 5 (highest score). The results suggest he enjoys a favourable rating across a wide category of voters. Among non-vot- ers Caruana manages to scrape the pass mark by clinching a score of 2.6. Predictably Caruana gets his lowest score (2.4) among 2022 PN voters and among current PN voters (2.2) and his best score among current (3.8) and 2022 Labour voters (3.5). A breakdown by age shows the finance minister clinching his best score among over 65-year-olds, amongst which his rating reaches the 3.1 mark in what could be an indication of Labour's focus on sustaining pensions in recent budgets. But in an indication of growing dissatisfaction among the middle and working classes, Caruana's score falls to a respectable but lower 2.7 among those aged 36-50 – the most likely to feel the pinch of inflation amid budding family burdens and mid-career peaks. A breakdown by education also shows Caruana getting his lowest score among those who contin- ued their studies after secondary level but did not attend university (2.7). On a regional level Caruana gets his best in score in Gozo (3.2), a toss-up region which is pivotal for Labour's majority. 51% of pensioners say Budget impacted them positively in contrast to just 15% of 36- to 50-year-olds Clyde Caruana gets best score among over-65s and lowest from struggling 36–50-year-olds 45 40 35 30 25 20 15 10 5 0 PL PN No one Who do you trust more with managing the country's economy and finances? On a scale from 0 to 5, how do you rate the performance of the Finance Minister? The survey was carried out was carried between 1st November 2023 and 9th November 2023 for which 637 people opted to complete the survey. Stratified random sampling based on region, gender and age was used. A fraction of those who opted to complete the survey chose not to answer a few of the questions for which they are treated as missing values. Missing values analysis was then carried to determine the type of technique to replace the values. A combination of logistic and linear regression with predictive mean matching was used to replace certain missing values completing and enlarging the sample set from which the final results were extracted. The margin of error for this result 3.85% for a confidence interval of 95%. Methodology 2.9 5 0 16-35 36-50 51-65 65+ Positively Negatively No difference Don't know Age Gender Region Education 2022 Voters 70 60 50 40 30 20 10 0 16-35 36-50 51-65 65+ PL PN No one On a scale from 0 to 5, how do you rate theperformance of the Finance Minister? Methodology The survey was carried out was carried between 1st November 2023 and 9th November 2023 for which 637 people opted to complete the survey. Stratified random sampling based on region, gender and age was used. A fraction of those who opted to complete the survey chose not to answer a few of the questions for which they are treated as missing values. Missing values analysis was then carried to determine the type of technique to replace the values. A combination of logistic and linear regression with predictive mean matching was used to replace certain missing values completing and enlarging the sample set from which the final results were extracted. The margin of error for this result 3.85% for a confidence interval of 95%.