SUPPORT for a republic is at an all-time high following the coronation of King Charles, according to a major attitudes tracker.
Pollsters at Ipsos have been tracking public attitudes towards the monarchy since 1993 and have now revealed support for an elected head of state is at the highest level recorded – with 28% of Britons now backing the idea.
The survey, conducted between May 10 to 16 this year, also found that King Charles enjoyed a post-coronation approval rating bounce with 63% of people saying they are happy with the job he is doing.
Participants were also asked whether they believed Britain would be better or worse off without the monarchy. Opinions on this have remained relatively unchanged on this since the early 2000s, said Ipsos, with 43% saying the country would be worse off, 17% saying better off and 35% saying it would make no difference.
The polling firm added that the number of people saying the UK would be better off as a republic had increased slightly by four percentage points from this time last year.
Gideon Skinner, head of political research at Ipsos, said: “Both King Charles and Prince William have seen improvements in their public satisfaction ratings after the coronation, to levels that most politicians would be only too delighted to receive. And it remains the case that a clear majority of Britons want to keep the monarchy.
“However, unlike Charles and William’s personal ratings, and unlike the examples of the previous Jubilees, that support for the institution itself has not seen a further boost after the coronation ceremony.
“Instead, the proportion who would prefer a republic has slowly increased to 28%, the highest level in 30 years of Ipsos tracking. This reinforces the importance for the royals to reach out to those who are more lukewarm in their support – especially young people.”
