Note to Kate: The Nation will be happy either way

Freddie SayersEditor-in-Chief of YouGov
March 19, 2013, 3:51 PM GMT+0

Princess Kate said over the weekend that she is hoping for a boy. But she needn't worry: today we reveal that the British Public will be equally happy either way

During a St. Patrick's day visit on Sunday the Duchess of Cambridge confessed that she is hoping for a boy, while Prince William is hoping for a girl.

Royal spouses throughout the ages have felt pressure to produce a boy, and it may be that Kate feels that the nation will be most delighted by a boy, just as they were by Princess Diana's prompt production of an "heir and a spare" in the 1980s.

But times have changed. A recent change in the law means that whether the baby is a boy or a girl it will grow up to become the monarch.

YouGov today reveals that the British public's attitudes have changed too. Fully 82% of respondents said they don't mind either way - with equal percentages saying they would prefer a boy (9%) and a girl (9%).

The results were broadly the same across all ages and social groups. Men are marginally more likely to hope for a boy, and women marginally more likely to hope for a girl. Meanwhile, supporters of the Conservative Party are more likely to hope for a boy while supporters of the Labour Party are more likely to hope for a girl.

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