Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1511791
THE budget has not drastical- ly changed the public mood as nearly two thirds of respondents still feel that Malta "is going in the wrong direction", MaltaToday's November shows. But compared to last month the percentage of those who think the country is "going in the right di- rection" has increased from 31% to 35%. This was the second time that respondents were asked to state whether they feel the country is going in a wrong or a right direc- tion. Significantly the survey shows that the least optimistic remain those aged between 36 to 50, among whom those who think the country has taken a wrong turn have slightly declined from 79% last month to 77% now. The survey shows that this cat- egory which is more likely to in- clude parents at the peak of their working career was also the least positive in its assessment of the budget. In contrast, among younger re- spondents aged between 16 to 35, the percentage who think that the country "is going in the wrong di- rection" has declined from 77% to 68%. Among 51- to 65-year-olds the percentage who think the country has taken a wrong turn has re- mained stable at 67%. But 65-year-olds remain the most optimistic category with the percentage of those who think the country has taken a wrong turn declining from 56% last month to 51% now. The increase in optimism in this category corresponds to other survey results showing gains by the Labour Party and a positive assessment of the budget among this category. A regional breakdown shows the percentage of respondents with a gloomy outlook on the country's direction increasing in the Labour leaning Southeastern region (from 61% to 69%) and Gozo (from 55% to 60%). But the percentage of those with a negative outlook has decreased in all other regions, particularly in the Northern region (from 77% to 61%). Significantly the survey suggests that non-voters have become slightly more positive in their outlook after the budget, with the percentage of those who think the country has taken a wrong turn declining from 87% last month to 77% now. Inflation still biting hard but pen- sioners feel better But while the survey suggests a less gloomy outlook, the survey confirms that inflation is biting hard on personal incomes. The survey asked respondents whether in general their person- al finances are getting better or worse. This month's survey shows the percentage who feel a pinch in their income increasing from 39% last month to 44% now. This corresponded to a four-point decrease in the percentage of re- spondents who say their financial position remains unchanged and a two-point increase who think that their financial position is improv- ing. But over 65-year-olds are defying this national trend. In fact, among this category 38% have reported an improvement in their financial position up from 30% last month. 14 SURVEY maltatoday | SUNDAY • 19 NOVEMBER 2023 Government scrapes pass mark again, In the aftermath of the budget, government scores 2.6 marks out of five on MaltaToday's government performance barometer, while the percentage of those who think the country has taken a wrong turn has decreased from 69% to 65%. JAMES DEBONO reports. Better Worse The same 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%. 2.6 On a scale from 0 to 5, how do you rate the government's performance? Overall The country's direction F M 16-35 36-50 51-65 65+ Northern Northern Harbour South Eastern Southern Harbour Western Gozo Primary Secondary Post-Sec Tertiary PL 2022 PN 2022 Did not Vote 2022 PL Now PN Now Will not Vote Now 0%% 20%% 40%% 60%% 80%% 100%% 34.5% 34.5% 34.5% 65.5% 65.5% 65.5% 35.1% 35.1% 35.1% 64.9% 64.9% 64.9% 31.6% 31.6% 31.6% 68.4% 68.4% 68.4% 23.4% 23.4% 23.4% 76.6% 76.6% 76.6% 33.5% 33.5% 33.5% 65.5% 65.5% 65.5% 49% 49% 49% 51% 51% 51% 39.1% 39.1% 39.1% 60.9% 60.9% 60.9% 30.1% 30.1% 30.1% 69.9% 69.9% 69.9% 31.4% 31.4% 31.4% 68.6% 68.6% 68.6% 38.2% 38.2% 38.2% 61.8% 61.8% 61.8% 35.5% 35.5% 35.5% 64.5% 64.5% 64.5% 39.7% 39.7% 39.7% 60.3% 60.3% 60.3% 57.2% 57.2% 57.2% 42.8% 42.8% 42.8% 36.4% 36.4% 36.4% 63.6% 63.6% 63.6% 26.8% 26.8% 26.8% 73.2% 73.2% 73.2% 28.7% 28.7% 28.7% 71.3% 71.3% 71.3% 52.2% 52.2% 52.2% 47.7% 47.7% 47.7% 17.7% 17.7% 17.7% 82.3% 82.3% 82.3% 27.5% 27.5% 27.5% 72.5% 72.5% 72.5% 67.4% 67.4% 67.4% 32.7% 32.7% 32.7% 15.3% 15.3% 15.3% 84.7% 84.7% 84.7% 23% 23% 23% 77% 77% 77% Right direction Wrong Direction Polling and market research since 2002 maltatoday SURVEY 34.8 65.2 Right Wrong On a scale from 0 to 5, how do you rate the government's performance?