Q. Thinking about your involvement (if any) in religious activities – over the last five years have you -
(This question was commissioned by Network Ten)
| Total | Vote Labor | Vote Lib/Nat | Vote Greens | Men | Women | Age
18-34 |
Aged
35-54 |
Aged 55+ | |
| Participated more in religious activities | 10% | 10% | 11% | 3% | 7% | 12% | 10% | 10% | 8% |
| Participated less in religious activities | 7% | 8% | 7% | 4% | 7% | 7% | 14% | 4% | 3% |
| Participated about the same | 25% | 22% | 27% | 24% | 24% | 26% | 22% | 29% | 24% |
| Not participated at all in religious activities | 55% | 59% | 52% | 67% | 58% | 52% | 49% | 54% | 64% |
| Don’t know | 3% | 1% | 2% | 2% | 3% | 3% | 5% | 3% | 1% |
10% say they have participated more in religious activities over the last 5 years and 7% have participated less. 25% say their participation has not changed and 55 have not participated in religious activities at all.
Women (12%) were more likely to have participated more and those aged under 35 more likely to have participated less (14%).
Older respondents were most likely not to have participated at all (64%).
Q. If a Federal Election was held today to which party will you probably give your first preference vote? If not sure, which party are you currently leaning toward?
Q. If don’t know -Well which party are you currently leaning to?
sample size = 1926
| First preference/leaning to | Election
21 Aug 10 |
4 weeks ago | 2 weeks ago | Last week | This week |
| Liberal | 45% | 47% | 46% | 45% | |
| National | 3% | 3% | 3% | 3% | |
| Total Lib/Nat | 43.6 | 48% | 50% | 49% | 48% |
| Labor | 38.0 | 32% | 30% | 31% | 32% |
| Greens | 11.8 | 11% | 11% | 11% | 11% |
| Other/Independent | 6.6 | 9% | 9% | 9% | 9% |
| 2PP | Election
21 Aug 10 |
4 weeks ago | 2 weeks ago | Last week | This week |
| Total Lib/Nat | 49.9% | 55% | 57% | 56% | 55% |
| Labor | 50.1% | 45% | 43% | 44% | 45% |
NB. The data in the above tables comprise 2-week averages derived the first preference/leaning to voting questions. Respondents who select ‘don’t know’ are not included in the results. The two-party preferred estimate is calculated by distributing the votes of the other parties according to their preferences at the 2010 election.
Q. If the Government introduces their carbon pricing scheme Tony Abbott has said that if the Liberal Party wins the next election he will repeal this legislation. Do you support or oppose his proposal to overturn the carbon pricing scheme after it has been put in place?
| Total | Vote Labor | Vote Lib/Nat | Vote Greens | |
| Total support | 50% | 24% | 81% | 15% |
| Total oppose | 36% | 63% | 9% | 73% |
| Strongly support | 30% | 8% | 56% | 8% |
| Support | 20% | 16% | 25% | 7% |
| Oppose | 14% | 19% | 7% | 12% |
| Strongly oppose | 22% | 44% | 2% | 61% |
| Don’t know | 15% | 13% | 9% | 10% |
Overall, 50% of respondents support Tony Abbott’s proposal to overturn the carbon pricing scheme after it has been put in place.
Not surprisingly 81% of Lib/Nat voters support Tony Abbott’s proposal. 63% of Labor voters, and 73% of Green voters oppose Tony Abbott’s proposal.
Support for Tony Abbott’s proposal increased with age, with 63% of those aged 65+, compared to 36% of those aged 18-24 supporting the proposal to overturn the carbon pricing scheme.
Males (53%) were slightly more likely than females (47%) to support Tony Abbott’s proposal.
25
Trust in Media
Q. How much trust do you have in what you read or hear in the following media?
| Total a lot/some
15 Mar 10 |
Total a lot /some | A lot of trust | Some trust | Not much trust | No trust at all | Don’t know | Don’t use | |
| News and opinion in daily newspapers | 62% | 53% | 6% | 47% | 29% | 10% | 2% | 6% |
| News and opinion in local newspapers | - | 54% | 6% | 48% | 29% | 8% | 2% | 6% |
| Commercial TV news and current affairs | 64% | 48% | 5% | 43% | 30% | 17% | 2% | 3% |
| ABC TV news and current affairs | 70% | 71% | 23% | 48% | 15% | 6% | 2% | 6% |
| Commercial radio news and current affairs | 54% | 46% | 4% | 42% | 32% | 12% | 3% | 7% |
| ABC radio news and current affairs | 62% | 67% | 21% | 46% | 17% | 4% | 2% | 10% |
| Commercial radio talkback programs | 38% | 33% | 5% | 28% | 32% | 22% | 3% | 10% |
| ABC radio talkback programs | 45% | 47% | 10% | 37% | 27% | 9% | 3% | 13% |
| News and opinion websites | 49% | 41% | 5% | 36% | 35% | 12% | 3% | 9% |
| Internet blogs | 20% | 20% | 2% | 18% | 35% | 25% | 5% | 16% |
Trust in media has dropped in all the types of media listed above since 15th March 2010 – except for ABC outlets, which have actually increased slightly.
ABC TV news and current affairs collects the highest number of people who have a lot/some trust (71%). This is followed by ABC radio news and current affairs (67%).
The lowest level of trust was recorded for internet blog (20% – the same as in March 2010). This was followed by commercial radio talkback programs (33%).
The biggest drop in trust was for Commercial TV news and current affairs which dropped from 64% to 49% for the total number of people who selected a lot/some trust.
Another big drop was in the level of trust for news and opinion in daily newspapers, which dropped from 62% in March 2010 to 53% for the total number of people who selected a lot/some trust.
25
Trust in Newspapers
Q. How much trust do you have in what you read in the following newspapers?
| A lot of trust | Some trust | Not much trust | No trust at all | Don’t know | |
| The Australian | 16% | 53% | 19% | 8% | 5% |
| The Telegraph (NSW only) | 7% | 45% | 25% | 21% | 2% |
| Sydney Morning Herald (NSW only) | 20% | 54% | 19% | 6% | 1% |
| The Age (Victoria only) | 23% | 56% | 15% | 3% | 3% |
| Herald Sun (Victoria only) | 7% | 47% | 32% | 12% | 2% |
| Courier Mail (Queensland only) | 9% | 56% | 22% | 12% | 1% |
* Note : Percentages based only on respondents who had read each newspaper.
Among those who have read each newspaper, 23% have a lot of trust in The Age and 20% have a lot of trust in the SMH. 16% of readers of The Australian have a lot of trust in the newspaper but only 7% have a lot of trust in The Telegraph and The Herald Sun. 46% have not much or no trust in The Telegraph and 44% have not much or no trust in The Herald Sun.
Liberal/National voters (21% and 57%) are more likely than Labor voters (17% and 50%) to have a lot or some trust in the Australian.
25
Concern about Phone Hacking
Q. Have the recent events in Britain concerning phone hacking by Rupert Murdoch’s newspaper, made you more or less concerned about the conduct of Australian newspapers?
| Total | Vote Labor | Vote Lib/Nat | Vote Greens | |
| Total more concerned | 51% | 56% | 48% | 68% |
| Total less concerned | 5% | 5% | 4% | 3% |
| Much more concerned | 15% | 19% | 11% | 26% |
| A little more concerned | 36% | 37% | 37% | 42% |
| A little less concerned | 4% | 4% | 4% | 3% |
| Much less concerned | 1% | 1% | >1% | - |
| Makes no difference | 38% | 33% | 44% | 26% |
| Don’t know | 6% | 6% |
Just over half (51%) of respondents are more concerned about the conduct of Australian newspapers following the recent events in Britain. 5% are less concerned, 38% say it makes no difference and 6% stated don’t know.
Green voters were more likely to state that they were more concerned (68%). Labor voters (56%) were more likely than Liberal voters (48%) to state that they were more concerned.
There was no substantial difference between the genders, states or age groups.
25
Media Ownership in Australia
Q. Rupert Murdoch owns most of Australia’s metropolitan newspapers including the Australian, Herald Sun, the Telegraph and the Courier Mail. Should the Government allow one company to own the majority of Australia’s major newspapers?
| Total
1 Nov 10 |
Total | Vote Labor | Vote Lib/Nat | Vote Greens | |
| Should allow | 15% | 9% | 8% | 13% | 4% |
| Should not allow | 50% | 58% | 60% | 53% | 76% |
| Don’t care | 26% | 23% | 22% | 26% | 12% |
| Don’t know | 9% | 10% | 11% | 8% | 8% |
58% of respondents stated that the Government should not allow one company to own the majority of Australia’s major newspapers. This is an increase on the 50% who stated the same thing in November 2010.
Just 9% of respondents think that the Government should allow one company to own the majority of Australia’s major newspapers (a drop for the 15% who said the same thing in November 2010.
Green voters (76%) were the most likely to state that the Government should not allow one company to own the majority of Australia’s major newspapers, followed by Labor (60%) and Lib/Nat voters (53%).
Females (62%) were more likely than males (54%) to select ‘should not allow’.
25
Regulation of Media
Q. Thinking about the media in Australia, do you think there needs to be more or less regulation of the media or is the present level of regulation about right?
| Total | Vote Labor | Vote Lib/Nat | Vote Greens | |
| Needs to be more regulation | 48% | 54% | 39% | 73% |
| Needs to be less regulation | 6% | 5% | 6% | 3% |
| Present regulation about right | 31% | 26% | 40% | 15% |
| Don’t know | 15% | 15% | 13% | 9% |
48% of respondents think that there needs to be more regulation of media in Australia. 31% think that the current level of regulation in about right.
Green voters (73%) are the most likely to think that there needs to be more regulation. This is followed by those that vote Labor (54%) and those that vote Lib/Nat (39%).
There was little difference between the genders, states or ages.
Q. Thinking about the Federal Parliament, how much difference do you think there is between the policies of the Labor Party and the Liberal Party?
| Total
8 Nov 10 |
Total | Vote Labor | Vote Lib/Nat | Vote Greens | |
| Very little difference | 29% | 21% | 20% | 13% | 29% |
| Some difference | 43% | 39% | 41% | 40% | 51% |
| A lot of difference | 19% | 31% | 32% | 44% | 15% |
| Don’t know | 9% | 8% | 6% | 4% | 4% |
21% of respondents think that there is very little difference between the policies of the Labor and Liberal parties. This is less than in November 2010 (29%). 39% of respondents think that there is some difference and 31% think there is a lot of difference (up from 19% in November last year).
Green voters (29%) were more likely to think that there is little difference.
There is little difference between the responses by gender or state.
Those aged 65+ were the most likely to think that there is a lot of difference between the policies of Labor and the Liberal parties (55%).
Q. Do you think that in the last few years, the policies of the Labor Party and the Liberal Party have become more similar or do you think their policies have been moving apart?
| Total
8 Nov 10 |
Total | Vote Labor | Vote Lib/Nat | Vote Greens | |
| Become more similar | 51% | 40% | 41% | 36% | 56% |
| Moving further apart | 17% | 31% | 28% | 41% | 22% |
| No change | 21% | 17% | 24% | 15% | 11% |
| Don’t know | 12% | 11% | 7% | 8% | 11% |
40% of respondents think that the Labor and Liberal parties are becoming more similar – a drop from the 51% who thought the same thing in November 2010.
31% think that they are moving further apart – a big increase from the 17% who thought the same thing in November 2010.
Green voters (56%) were the most likely to think that they were becoming more similar. However 41% of Labor voters and 36% of Lib/Nat voters also thought that they were becoming more similar.
Lib/Nat voters were the most likely to think that they were moving further apart (41%).
There was no substantial differences based on gender, state or age
20
Concern About Climate Change
Q. Over the last 2 years, have you become more concerned or less concerned about the environmental effects of global warming or do you feel about the same as you did 2 years ago? (This question was commissioned by Network Ten).
| Total | Vote Labor | Vote Lib/Nat | Vote Greens | Men | Women | Age
18-34 |
Aged
35-54 |
Aged 55+ | |
| Total more concerned | 46% | 61% | 35% | 72% | 45% | 47% | 55% | 42% | 42% |
| Total less concerned | 11% | 4% | 19% | 2% | 16% | 6% | 12% | 11% | 10% |
| Much more concerned | 15% | 23% | 7% | 36% | 14% | 16% | 16% | 14% | 16% |
| A little more concerned | 31% | 38% | 28% | 36% | 31% | 31% | 39% | 28% | 26% |
| A little less concerned | 5% | 3% | 8% | 1% | 7% | 3% | 6% | 6% | 3% |
| Much less concerned | 6% | 1% | 11% | 1% | 9% | 3% | 6% | 5% | 7% |
| About the same | 40% | 32% | 45% | 24% | 35% | 45% | 29% | 43% | 48% |
| Don’t know | 3% | 3% | 2% | 2% | 3% | 3% | 3% | 5% | * |
46% say they have become more concerned about the effects of global warming over the last 2 years, 11% are less concerned and 40% say they feel about the same.
Those more likely to be more concerned are Labor voters (61%), Greens voters (72%) and those aged under 35 (55%).
Those more likely to feel about the same are Liberal/National voters (45%), women (45%) and those aged 55+ (48%).
Essential Report
Two Party Preferred: 20 Feb 2012
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