The latest Ipsos New Zealand Issues Monitor finds that concern about inflation / cost of living remains the number one issue worrying New Zealanders and is continuing to intensify, with nearly 2 in 3 New Zealanders now identifying it as a key issue they are currently facing.

Concern about climate change has significantly increased, rising by six percentage points to 27% - the highest point since tracking began in February 2018 and placing it in the top-5 issues for the first time in nearly four years.

In 2018, Ipsos New Zealand started tracking the key issues facing New Zealand. In this wave of the Ipsos New Zealand Issues Monitor, we asked 1,002 New Zealanders to select from a list of 20, the three most important issues facing the country and to rate the ability of the country’s political parties to best manage these issues.

Key findings include:

• The top-5 issues currently concerning New Zealanders in September 2022 are inflation / cost of living (65%), followed by housing / price of housing (33%) and crime / law & order (33%), and healthcare / hospitals (27%) and climate change (27%).
• Inflation / cost of living first climbed into the top spot in February 2022 and has continued to trend upwards since then. It is now at the highest level of concern since measurement began in early 2018. The National Party continues to be seen by more New Zealanders (34%) than any other political party as being the most capable of handling this issue. However, this is a significant decrease from the previous wave (40%) while confidence in Labour has risen by 5 percentage points to 31% - closing the gap between the two parties.
• Climate change has risen significantly in prominence as an issue, with more New Zealanders identifying it as a key concern since tracking began in February 2018. As a result, it has re-entered the country’s top-5 issues for the first time since July 2019.
• Concerns about housing remains steady, with 33% of New Zealanders placing it in their top three issues, compared with 60% at its height in February 2021. For the first time since October 2021, more New Zealanders believe that Labour is best equipped to manage the issue (29%, compared to 28% for National).
• Crime / law have also continued to rise in prominence and is now at a new record high (33%). It was also identified as the second-equal issue facing New Zealanders – its highest placing yet.
• While healthcare / hospitals remain in the top 5 (fourth-equal), concerns about the issue have significantly decreased since the previous wave in September 2022.
• The government’s performance rating has stabilised following a steady decline since November 2020.
• When asked which political party New Zealanders believe is the most capable of managing the issues, Labour was seen as most capable of managing 2 of the top 5 issues: housing / price of housing and healthcare / hospitals, while National was seen as most capable of handling inflation / cost of living and crime / law & order.

Carin Hercock, Managing Director, Ipsos New Zealand, said: “Concerns about inflation and the cost of living have been with us for 12 months now, and Ipsos research in other markets shows that this is the number one issue facing most countries around the world. Globally, the trend is that these issues become amplified when mixed with a crisis, housing remains the second highest issue and we may see this increase in concern, as we deal with the impacts of the devastatingly severe weather events our country has faced over the few weeks.”

Amanda Dudding, Research Director, Public Affairs, Ipsos New Zealand, added: “New Zealand seems to have been thrown one challenge after another over the last few years, but we’ve never seen an issue as prominent as the cost of living and inflation is now. Crime and climate change are growing concerns and housing has been a long-term issue. These are the things on the top of the agenda for New Zealanders, the issues all political parties are going to need to address as we head towards the election.”

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