Report “Consistent and widespread belief in the threat of COVID-19 to the UK economy”

The report explores how people perceive the threat of COVID-19 to their health, their finances, the economy, and the health of the population, based on a survey fielded from 30 July to 5 August 2020. Among its highlights:

• most people still see COVID-19 as quite threatening or very threatening to the UK economy, the health of the UK population as a whole, and their personal health
• belief in the threat of COVID-19 to the UK economy has been most widespread and most consistent
• just 17% think that the coronavirus situation in the UK is ‘heading in the right direction’ – the lowest figure we have seen since the start of the study in mid-April 2020.

The report is the ninth Factsheet, part of the UK COVID-19 news and information project that analyses how the British public navigates information and misinformation about coronavirus and about how the government and other institutions are responding to the pandemic.