The roughly 60 percent of those who believe Government is committed to pursuing the Social Agenda is "pretty strong" considering the policy has just been launched, Premier Alex Scott said yesterday.

"We haven't even begun to demonstrate the programmes in action," he said.

In a poll conducted by Research Innovations, 13.4 percent of the 403 residents contacted by random telephoning said they believed Government was very committed to pursuing the Social Agenda. The vast majority, 47.1 percent, believed Government was somewhat committed to the policy.

More than a quarter, 27.6 percent, believed Government was not very committed, and 11.8 percent believed Government was not committed at all.

"I think you'll find those numbers mirror the support of the Opposition," Mr. Scott said.

Seniors showed the least inclination to believe in Government's commitment to the Social Agenda, with 15.5 percent of seniors believing it was not at all committed ? compared to just 5.2 percent of those aged 18-35.

The strongest belief in Government's commitment came from the 36-54 year olds. In that age group, 14.8 percent believed Government was very committed, compared to 12 percent of those over the age of 55.

Women were more moderate on their view of Government's commitment, with some 80 percent believing Government was somewhat to not very committed. Men were more extreme, with 15.2 percent believing Government was very committed, about 65 percent saying somewhat to not very committed, and 18.3 percent saying not at all committed.

In the household income bracket, 6.2 percent of those with a household income below $50,000 believed Government was very committed, compared to 13.9 percent of those with an income between $50,000-$100,000, and 24.2 percent of those making more than $100,000. More than 17 percent of those with an income below $50,000 believed Government was not at all committed, compared to 12.6 percent of those with an income between $50,000-$100,000 and 6.6 percent of those with an income over $100,000.

Racially, 16 percent of blacks believed Government was very committed (compared to 11 percent of whites and 0 percent of mixed races), while 5.7 percent of blacks believed Government was not at all committed (compared to 18.5 percent of whites and 11.1 percent of mixed race). The majority of the races fell into the somewhat committed range.

The 60 percent of those polled who believe in Government's commitment are either Government supporters or "folks who know this is an idea whose time has come", Mr. Scott said.

The poll, conducted between November 13-17, has a margin of error of 4.9 percent.