Scots pessimistic about recession

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People in Scotland were among the most pessimistic in the UK in their attitude to the recession, according to a poll carried out by ComRes for the BBC.

More than 40% thought the economy would continue to deteriorate for some time.

Scottish respondents were also the gloomiest about their own money - a quarter believed their finances would get worse over the next 12 months.

The poll, carried out across the UK, also showed that most people had become more careful with money.

More than 1,000 people were polled.

Researchers asked how they were being affected by the recession; how long they thought it would continue and what signs would tell them whether it was coming to an end.

Personal finances

Across the UK, 34% of those polled thought the recession would continue to get worse for some time but in Scotland that figure was 41%.

When it came to personal finances, people in Scotland were far less likely to believe their financial situation would improve than people living in other parts.

In the south east of England, 31% expected their circumstances to improve. In Scotland, only 13% anticipated an improvement in their finances while the majority believed they would stay the same.

The survey highlighted the changes in how people have been spending money.

They were much less likely to use a credit card or an overdraft and a half of people in Scotland said they were trying to save more.

In the UK, 69% of people said they were more aware of the price of things and in Scotland 78% said they paid closer attention to cost.

Feel good factor

However, less than half said they were better at budgeting than they were before the recession.

Asked about when they would believe the recession was over, three quarters of people said an increase in retail spending would be a good indicator, followed by an increase in shares and house prices.

A tiny percentage of respondents thought a general feel good factor with people smiling would indicate the downturn was over.

Whether this recession has changed Britain is debatable, according to the survey.

Just over a third believed that people would be less greedy and almost the same proportion said they would worry about the impact of another recession in the future.