New Zealanders' Worry About Cost Of Living On The Rise Again Following The Budget 2025 Announcement
The quarterly survey of 1,002 New Zealanders reveals that following a steady decline since May 2024, more than one in two (55%) consider inflation / cost of living to be the most important issue. Healthcare follows as the second highest concern, while the economy remains the third most important issue, with slight increases (by 2pp) for both issues. Notably, New Zealanders' concern for the economy has reached the highest level since February 2021.
Key findings for the New Zealand market include:
Inflation / cost of living is still the primary concern for one in two New Zealanders. While not statistically significant, the proportion of New Zealanders selecting this as a key issue has risen by 5 percentage points from the previous wave in February.
Healthcare / hospitals remains the second top issue and continues on its upward trend, reaching its highest level of concern since tracking began (43%).
Concerns around the economy continue to rise over the long-term, once again reaching the highest level seen since February 2021.
Issues change in importance across generations:
Inflation / cost of living is the primary concern for New Zealanders aged 18-64, while those aged 65+ are significantly less likely to be concerned about it
Healthcare continues as the primary concern for those aged 65+, it ranks third and second respectively for those aged 18-34 and 35-64
Housing is the second most important issue for 18-34 age group and fifth for 35–49-year-olds, while it is outside of the top-5 issues for those aged 50+
While concern for the economy is relatively consistent across all the age groups, unemployment is more significant issue for young New Zealanders aged 18-34 (23%).
Although political leaning has an impact on the perception of importance for multiple issues, both those intending to vote on the 'left' if there was an election tomorrow, and those intending to vote on the 'right' continue to agree that inflation / cost of living and healthcare are the two primary concerns facing New Zealand. However:
The economy and crime are of significantly higher concern to right-leaning voters
Left-leaning voters are significantly more concerned about poverty / inequality.
Following a significant decline, New Zealanders' rating of the current coalition government's performance has stabilised, rising by 0.1 points to 4.3, with 39% of New Zealanders scoring it 0-3 out of 10.
Labour is now perceived as the political party most capable of handling three of the top five issues – inflation / cost of living, healthcare, and housing, while National is seen to be most capable of managing the economy and crime.
Beyond the top 5 issues, National is now seen as being the most capable of managing just one of the remaining fifteen issues: Defence / foreign affairs / terrorism.
New Zealanders' top five concerns are largely in line with our Australian counterparts, with both countries identifying inflation / cost of living as their top issue and showing a similar level of concern for the economy. More Australians are concerned about housing than us, while more of us are concerned about healthcare.
Carin Hercock, Country Manager, Ipsos New Zealand, said: 'Despite several reductions in the OCR, New Zealanders are still feeling the impact of high living costs. This is particularly an issue for young adult New Zealanders who are increasingly concerned about inflation, housing costs and unemployment.'
Amanda Dudding, Executive Director Public Affairs, Ipsos New Zealand, added: 'No matter your political stance, inflation and healthcare are seen as the most important issues for New Zealanders. Healthcare is now the leading issue for 7 out of 10 New Zealanders over 65 years and is well ahead of the level of concern felt during the peak of Covid community transition. '
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