Social inequality in England and Scotland

An unequal union? Attitudes towards social inequality in England and Scotland

This chapter seeks to understand the differences and similarities in attitudes to social inequality in England and Scotland. For the first time, the ISSP module of questions on social inequality has been asked on both the British Social Attitudes and Scottish Social Attitudes surveys, facilitating a fresh investigation of attitudes to inequality. The chapter builds on previous attitudinal research which has indicated that Scotland is more socially democratic in outlook than England, though this difference is often smaller than common wisdom would suggest.

Spotlight

Most people in both England and Scotland think that the income distribution in Britain is unfair. People in Scotland are more likely than those in England to perceive the income distribution in Britain to be “very unfair”.

How fair or unfair do you think the income distribution is in Britain?

Download the chapter.