A new survey of voters who identify as Christian has revealed some of the issues most likely to influence their votes in the General Election.
The results are based on responses from nearly 2,000 voters in a ComRes poll commissioned by Premier Christian Radio.
The poll asked respondents about the importance of a variety of issues including freedom of conscience, Christian values, public morality and same-sex marriage.
Freedom
The poll found that 90 per cent of Christians believe a party’s “commitment to protecting freedom of conscience” is important.
It also revealed that 81 per cent of Christians think that Britain “seems to be going in the wrong direction morally”.
More than 60 per cent of respondents agreed that it is “harder to be a Christian in Britain today” than it was in 2010 at the last General Election.
Marriage
Participants were also asked about the redefinition of marriage and how it affected their likelihood to vote Conservative.
More than a third agreed with the statement: “I would have considered voting Conservative but gay marriage has put me off doing so”.
And almost 80 per cent thought that David Cameron was wrong to say that gay marriage was “among his proudest achievements in 2014”.
Personal Christian faith
When asked if a party leader having a “personal Christian faith” would influence their vote, 40 per cent said yes; the figure rising to nearly 50 per cent when applied to their local candidate.
To find out what the main parties have said on a range of important issues, including education, drugs and freedom of speech look out for our new Election Focus series.
To see your MP’s voting record and to reserve a copy of The Christian Institute’s Election Briefing 2015, visit https://www.christian.org.uk/election