Verdicts · Economy
Economy referendums: how members voted
Settled referendums
101
since Jun 2026
Votes cast
50,591
all time, on the economy
This week
5,317
votes · 3 referendums settled
Written opinions
1,648
all time, left by voters
Best of each side this week
Most respected on economy this week
- NorfolkCannon16 respects
- RobThompson11 respects
- CivilBeacon8615 respects
- BenL15 respects
How economy results lean
This weekCentreLast weekCentreAll timeCentreWhere every side agreed this week
Left, Centre and Right voters all came down the same way.
Most active regions this week
Voters
Votes each week
5,317 so far this week
This week's economy highlights
Biggest landslide
YES 79%
Should private equity firms be banned from buying care homes, GP surgeries and other public services?
Won by 58 points on 1,782 votes.
Closest result
YES 72%
Should the 5p fuel duty cut be kept beyond December, even if it means less money for public services?
Decided by 44 points.
Most debated
YES 79%
Should private equity firms be banned from buying care homes, GP surgeries and other public services?
50 written opinions.
This week
3 settled · 5,317 votes
majority
% voting yes, by leaning
Should the 5p fuel duty cut be kept beyond December, even if it means less money for public services?
The verdict
Yes voters rejected the trade-off in the question itself: the most-respected case was “This shouldn't be an either/or”. The No side, meanwhile, mostly argued about North Sea drilling, not public services.
majority
% voting yes, by leaning
Should private equity firms be banned from buying care homes, GP surgeries and other public services?
The verdict
Yes won overwhelmingly, yet the most-respected No case conceded half the ground: “Not banned. But provision of these services should be regulated”. Even the winners talked of “strict controls” on asset stripping.
majority
% voting yes, by leaning
Should parents pay income tax when they hand their family business to their children?
The verdict
No won overwhelmingly, and the sharpest charge was that this is “Just inheritance tax dressed up as income tax”. The Yes side left two thin, unrated arguments.
Last week
8 settled · 13,570 votes
majority
% voting yes, by leaning
Should the UK accept higher prices to produce more of its own food, energy and steel?
The verdict
Yes won comfortably, yet many on both sides rejected the premise that self-sufficiency must cost more. One No voter called it a “poorly worded question”, while the top Yes case wanted tariffs so “buying local is cheaper”.
majority
% voting yes, by leaning
Should the tax surcharge on bank profits be raised from 3% to 8% in the Budget?
The verdict
Yes won comfortably, carried by a bailout memory, while No voters argued that “banks are not atms for profligate governments” and that any levy lands on customers.
majority
% voting yes, by leaning
Is it acceptable for the government to raise income tax, National Insurance or VAT in the Budget, despite promising not to?
The verdict
Voters comfortably rejected breaking the tax pledges, and the sharpest No lines were about trust: “voters have no reason to believe anything in a manifesto” if core pledges get binned. Yes voters answered that circumstances change.
majority
% voting yes, by leaning
Is the government doing enough to help people with the cost of living?
The verdict
Voters overwhelmingly said the government isn't doing enough, yet the sharpest No voices wanted less of it: "a cost-of-government crisis" was how one put it, and a Yes voter used the very same phrase.
majority
% voting yes, by leaning
Should online marketplaces like Amazon have to collect VAT from their sellers?
The verdict
Yes won comfortably, but the most-respected Yes voices barely cheered: both starred cases came with conditions, while No's top line was that “Continually coming up with ways to harm amazon won't help failed competition”.
majority
% voting yes, by leaning
Should the UK adopt the euro?
The verdict
Voters rejected the euro overwhelmingly, with one asking “Join the euro?? Are you insane??” while the only Yes case shrugged that nobody should care whose head is on the money.
majority
% voting yes, by leaning
Should the next Budget tax wealth more rather than cut pensions and welfare?
The verdict
Yes narrowly won, yet the No side wrote the louder argument: that “the wealthy will leave the uk” and a tax on them will cost more than it raises, while Yes voters mostly offered slogans and a caveat.
majority
% voting yes, by leaning
Should the chancellor reduce duty on alcohol?
The verdict
Voters comfortably refused a duty cut, though even many Yes voters wanted it only for pubs. The most-respected No case was blunt: pubs are crushed by “business rates, pubco leases and energy bills”, not baseline duty.
Every economy verdict
- Should the 5p fuel duty cut be kept beyond December, even if it means less money for public services?YES 72%1,764 votes · 20 Oct
- Should private equity firms be banned from buying care homes, GP surgeries and other public services?YES 79%1,782 votes · 20 Oct
- Should parents pay income tax when they hand their family business to their children?NO 76%1,771 votes · 20 Oct
- Should the UK accept higher prices to produce more of its own food, energy and steel?YES 67%1,754 votes · 19 Oct
- Should the tax surcharge on bank profits be raised from 3% to 8% in the Budget?YES 63%1,770 votes · 19 Oct
- Is it acceptable for the government to raise income tax, National Insurance or VAT in the Budget, despite promising not to?NO 64%1,779 votes · 18 Oct
- Is the government doing enough to help people with the cost of living?NO 83%1,669 votes · 17 Oct
- Should online marketplaces like Amazon have to collect VAT from their sellers?YES 68%1,563 votes · 16 Oct
- Should the UK adopt the euro?NO 84%1,686 votes · 15 Oct
- Should the next Budget tax wealth more rather than cut pensions and welfare?YES 54%1,660 votes · 15 Oct
- Should the chancellor reduce duty on alcohol?NO 56%1,689 votes · 13 Oct
- Should business rates be replaced with a tax on sales, including online sales?YES 61%1,466 votes · 11 Oct
- Should the government scale back its spending plans in this month’s Budget?YES 52%1,546 votes · 10 Oct
- Should the UK impose a windfall tax on large supermarkets during a cost of living crisis?NO 61%1,380 votes · 4 Oct
- Should recent tax and policy changes that increase farmers’ costs be reversed to support the farming economy?YES 59%1,350 votes · 1 Oct
- Should the government scrap inheritance tax?NO 53%1,358 votes · 30 Sept
- Should the UK introduce a windfall tax on profits earned by banks?YES 60%1,221 votes · 27 Sept
- Should socialism be the basis of the UK’s economic system?NO 71%1,227 votes · 26 Sept
- Should Capital Gains Tax (CGT) be raised to up to 45% to fund higher income tax personal allowances?NO 67%1,198 votes · 24 Sept
- Should the UK reintroduce VAT-free shopping for international tourists?YES 50%1,197 votes · 24 Sept
Show all 101 verdicts ↓
- Should all UK utilities be nationalised, including water, electricity, and gas?YES 60%961 votes · 18 Sept
- Should the UK have one rate of income tax for all citizens?NO 70%912 votes · 16 Sept
- Should the UK introduce a wealth “exit” tax for individuals leaving the country?NO 60%879 votes · 15 Sept
- Should the UK Government favour reducing public spending rather than raising taxes?YES 70%826 votes · 14 Sept
- Should England's mayors have powers to charge uncapped levies on business overnight stays?NO 73%727 votes · 12 Sept
- Should married couples be taxed jointly, sharing their allowances and tax bands?YES 53%695 votes · 11 Sept
- Should the tax system be reformed by scrapping the personal allowance in exchange for a lower basic rate of income tax?NO 65%666 votes · 10 Sept
- Should the UK pull away from China and encourage new manufacturing in the UK?YES 84%677 votes · 10 Sept
- Should the UK shift away from manufacturing to focus on a knowledge-based economy?NO 83%655 votes · 9 Sept
- Should taxes rise to ease pressure on rising borrowing costs at the Autumn budget?NO 74%632 votes · 8 Sept
- Should the tax-free personal income allowance increase from £12,570 to £15,000?YES 85%612 votes · 7 Sept
- Should companies pay an 'automation tax' when replacing human workers with artificial intelligence?YES 55%600 votes · 7 Sept
- Was Burnham correct in blaming Brexit for low growth?NO 58%580 votes · 3 Sept
- Should there be a 2% tax on individual wealth over £10 million?NO 53%575 votes · 3 Sept
- Is shifting from the 'Broken Britain' narrative essential to increase UK R&D investment?YES 65%559 votes · 3 Sept
- Should the Bank of England allow the pound to depreciate?NO 69%465 votes · 2 Sept
- Are we heading for techno-feudalism?YES 69%483 votes · 2 Sept
- Has supply-side economic policy improved living standards for all income groups in the UK?NO 83%415 votes · 30 Aug
- Should income tax on overtime over 40 hours a week be removed for all workers?NO 56%440 votes · 29 Aug
- Should high street banks lose the power to create new money when they lend?YES 54%253 votes · 23 Aug
- Is the UK tax system complicated by design rather than by accident?YES 73%279 votes · 23 Aug
- Should the UK reindustrialise at pace?YES 83%305 votes · 21 Aug
- Should overall alcohol tax rise on off-licenses while being cut for pubs?YES 59%246 votes · 20 Aug
- With unsustainable national debts and fiat currency under stress, should the world return to the gold standard?NO 54%232 votes · 20 Aug
- Should unused pensions be included in estates for inheritance tax from April 2027?NO 72%262 votes · 18 Aug
- Have consecutive UK governments harmed SMEs on purpose?YES 54%236 votes · 15 Aug
- Should UK banks be required to ease restrictions on cryptocurrency firms?NO 67%222 votes · 15 Aug
- Is the UK a mixed economy rather than pure capitalism?YES 76%208 votes · 13 Aug
- Should the UK replace stamp duty, business rates and council tax with a land value tax?NO 52%188 votes · 12 Aug
- Is the "Cost of Living Crisis" over?NO 94%200 votes · 12 Aug
- Should the government increase taxes on banks?YES 57%183 votes · 11 Aug
- Does the UK's £3 trillion national debt threaten future generations?YES 78%175 votes · 8 Aug
- Should the UK cut welfare and foreign aid to address its national debt?YES 64%153 votes · 6 Aug
- Should the UK budget deficit be forbidden, except cases of unseen, national catastrophe?YES 56%148 votes · 6 Aug
- Would giving regional mayors a share of income tax strengthen local economies?YES 57%161 votes · 4 Aug
- Should business rates rise on warehouses and fall for high street shops?YES 78%156 votes · 4 Aug
- Should it be a legal requirement for Government to balance the books rather than borrowing in order to give money away?YES 57%115 votes · 2 Aug
- Should UK pension funds invest more in early-stage venture capital?NO 63%112 votes · 2 Aug
- Should Capital Gains Tax rates be equalised with Income Tax rates?NO 52%127 votes · 29 Jul
- Is appointing John Healey as Chancellor the right move for the British economy?YES 52%104 votes · 28 Jul
- Should the UK scrap its digital services tax to avoid US tariffs?NO 60%143 votes · 27 Jul
- Should the government scrap the agricultural inheritance tax changes?YES 59%27 votes · 27 Jul
- Should the UK renegotiate its US trade deal to match the EU's new 10% tariff rate across all sectors?YES 60%10 votes · 27 Jul
- Should the UK change GDP growth as the main economic target in favour of a no-growth model focused on wellbeing and sust?NO 50%105 votes · 26 Jul
- Should the UK pursue full nationalisation of utilities funded solely by consolidating private pension funds?NO 53%112 votes · 26 Jul
- Should the UK government implement the Makers' Manifesto to strengthen manufacturing?YES 69%106 votes · 26 Jul
- Is Burnham's rejection of Thatcher-era policies the right direction for Britain?YES 58%64 votes · 25 Jul
- Is it time for a wealth tax on millionaires?YES 56%133 votes · 25 Jul
- Should the UK pursue growth in every postcode through greater local community power?YES 69%121 votes · 25 Jul
- Is the increasing inability to build wealth pushing people closer to socialism?YES 62%106 votes · 25 Jul
- Does the UK tax system favour wealth over work?YES 65%110 votes · 23 Jul
- Should the government further ease steel import tariffs and quotas to protect construction projects?YES 53%106 votes · 22 Jul
- Should the UK tax wealth not work for assets over 10 million in value and reduce tax on income?YES 60%113 votes · 22 Jul
- Should the UK have nationalised British Steel from its Chinese owners?YES 87%89 votes · 22 Jul
- Should the threshold increase for the higher rate of income tax?YES 64%102 votes · 21 Jul
- Should the British people have control over their own public utilities?YES 83%192 votes · 21 Jul
- Did Margaret Thatcher's reforms unduly impact the nation outside of the south east?YES 61%102 votes · 21 Jul
- If an AI data centre opened near you, would you support it for the jobs and economic reasons?YES 52%157 votes · 18 Jul
- Should the UK sign trade deals to open markets for British beef, lamb and dairy farmers?YES 89%54 votes · 17 Jul
- Is a trillion too much wealth for one man?YES 60%113 votes · 16 Jul
- Should the government remove policy costs from business electricity bills to boost economic growth?YES 80%59 votes · 16 Jul
- Should you own nothing and be happy?NO 87%95 votes · 13 Jul
- Should the UK introduce a 2% annual tax on personal wealth over £10 million?YES 52%62 votes · 13 Jul
- Should the government force UK pension funds to invest more in British companies?YES 53%49 votes · 11 Jul
- Should HMRC increase enforcement to close the £17.3bn small company corporation tax gap?YES 60%52 votes · 11 Jul
- Should the government reinstate a higher bank surcharge to raise public revenue?YES 53%45 votes · 11 Jul
- Has Utilities privatisation failed?YES 77%111 votes · 10 Jul
- Does the UKs financial sector have too much control over the British economy?YES 56%111 votes · 10 Jul
- Did Margaret Thatcher's reforms unduly impact the nation outside of the south east?YES 75%76 votes · 8 Jul
- Should the Bank of England stop counting banks' gilt holdings towards the leverage ratio?YES 58%45 votes · 7 Jul
- Do you agree on Burnham's 10-year plan?NO 62%56 votes · 6 Jul
- Is it too late to reindustrialise the UK?NO 66%58 votes · 4 Jul
- Does wealth concentration among billionaires undermine democratic control of society?YES 57%63 votes · 4 Jul
- Should the government prioritise British-made cement in public construction projects?YES 67%67 votes · 4 Jul
- Should the UK implement subsidies and tax breaks for farmers based on their efficiency?YES 69%49 votes · 4 Jul
- Is it wrong for CEOs and business owners to make hundreds of times more annually than their workers?YES 55%49 votes · 4 Jul
- Do the richest people in the UK have more than their fair share of the wealth?YES 73%45 votes · 4 Jul
- Should Andy Burnham adopt radical cost-of-living policies if he becomes prime minister?NO 51%35 votes · 3 Jul
- Do you agree on a 22% tax on cash and ISA?NO 63%60 votes · 1 Jul
- Should Andy Burnham give more powers to local government to spread economic growth?YES 56%27 votes · 1 Jul
- Should companies pay a levy when replacing workers with artificial intelligence?NO 55%58 votes · 30 Jun