More from Sunday's YouGov poll
As usual YouGov's poll in the Sunday Times contains a variety of questions. Looking at the economy first perceptions of how Gordon Brown is handling the crisis continue to head in a positive direction. Last month more people actually thought he was handling it badly than positively (37% to 29%), now people are evenly split with 33% thinking he has done well, 33% badly. Brown and Darling have also increased their lead over Cameron and Osborne on who would handle the crisis better. Cameron and Osborne continue to lead Brown and Darling on being more trusted to raise people's standard of living, but by 32% to 28%, compared to 34% to 25% last month.
In terms of optimism on the economy, 87% think the economy is in a bad state compared to 90% last month. In contrast 56% now expect a recession over the next 12 months, compared to 51% last month.
Given the discussion in the comments here about the relative numbers of people who the interest rate cut would benefit or harm, I should also highlight a question YouGov asked about how the rate cut would affect people. 22% of people said it would help their finances (if that seems small, it's worth remembering about half of outstanding mortgages are on a fixed rate), with most of them saying they would save the money rather than spend it. 19%, including 38% of over 55s, said that they rely upon savings so the rate cut would hurt them.
Moving on, YouGov also asked about swearing on television. A plurality (49%) opposed a blanket ban on swearing on TV, with 39% supporting the idea. As might be expected this was heavily correlated with age, with 64% of over 55s supporting the idea and 68% of under 35s opposing it. 30% supported a total ban on "the F-word" on television, with 63% supporting it being banned before 9pm (41%) or 11pm (23%). 55% supported a ban on "the C-word" on TV, 40% supporting it being banned before 9pm (21%) or 11pm (19%). Asked about the role of the BBC in general, 66% thought it should continue to offer a rule range of programmes, with 28% thinking it should concentrate more on public service television "such as news, documentaries and drama" and less on general entertainment.
Finally YouGov asked some more questions about Prince Charles. They found 44% expected him to be a good king, with 32% disagreeing. 65% thought he should continue to speak out when he becomes King, and 49% believed it would benefit the country if the monarch had a voice on current political controversies, with 38% disagreeing - which either suggests lots of cunning republicans, or that people don't really understand the importance of the monarchy avoiding any perceived political partisanship.
