NEW POLL: “Red Wall” voters reject ‘vaccine nationalism’

Polling also shows strong support for a global approach to end the pandemic.

New polling shows that the majority of people in Red Wall constituencies reject ‘vaccine nationalism’ and instead support fair access to vaccines and a global approach to end the COVID-19 pandemic for good.

Commissioned by anti-poverty organisation ONE, the polling looked at people’s views on the UK’s efforts to fight Covid-19 globally, and what that means for people here.

The polling looked at views from the Red Wall constituencies, as the Government has been focusing a lot of their political efforts there.
The research (1), conducted by polling company Savanta ComRes between December 4-9, revealed that of the Red Wall voters polled:

• Over 72% believed that ending the pandemic internationally is key to the British economic recovery.
• 79% thought “The UK should ‘play fair’ when agreeing deals to buy a vaccine, making sure they are transparent and proportionate to the UK’s needs.
• 76% agreed that “The pandemic will still present a risk to the UK if only some countries get the vaccine and others do not.”
• 58% supported the idea that, if it helped end the pandemic sooner, health workers and vulnerable groups in other countries should get the vaccine before healthy people at home
• 55% felt we “shouldn’t withdraw our support for countries who are worse equipped to deal with the COVID-19 pandemic than the UK, even if we are facing difficulties at home”.

Speaking about the findings, Romilly Greenhill, UK Director of ONE, said: “For much of this year, too many commentators have tried to use Red Wall voters as an excuse for advocating isolationist policies.

“The reality is that if countries try to go it alone, they will simply prolong the lifetime of the pandemic – so it’s heartening to see people in these constituencies share the same strong support for global solutions as voters in the rest of the country.

“Politicians need to stop hiding behind the “Red Wall” and other artificial divides and start delivering a global way out of this crisis that is in the best interests of people everywhere.”

The polling also showed that of people surveyed:

• Over 77% thought that now vaccines are being discovered and will soon be available, they should be accessible and affordable in all countries, rich and poor, at the same time.
• 69% agreed that “It’s not right for countries to hoard vaccine doses, as it’s selfish and means the pandemic will last longer.”
• 58% thought that “Vaccine nationalism will hurt the British economy. If Britain hordes more vaccines than it needs it will hurt the British economy by damaging our ability to trade and travel with other countries.”