Trust in the Scottish Government fell last year, according to new statistics from the Scottish Social Attitudes Survey.

The 2016 survey found 65 per cent of people trusted the Scottish Government to work in Scotland's best interests "just about always" or "most of the time", down from 73 per cent in 2015.

It also found 40 per cent of people trusted ministers "a great deal" or "quite a lot" to make fair decisions - down by nine percentage points since 2015.

Meanwhile, trust in the UK Government to work in Scotland's best interests increased slightly, but remained significantly lower, at 25 per cent in 2016, up from 23 perf cent in 2015.

The survey found 18 per cent trusted it to make fair decisions - unchanged from the previous year.

For the first time, more people thought the Scottish Government had most influence over the way Scotland is run - at 42 per cent - than the UK Government (41 per cent).

The survey is based on interviews with between 1,200 and 1,700 people between July 11 and December 23 last year.

Data has also been published on attitudes towards the economy and the NHS.

Almost a third of those surveyed said helping the economy to grow faster should be the Scottish Government's top priority.

More than half - 54 perf cent - thought the economy had weakened in the past year, compared with 34 perf cent in 2015.

Of those, 35% attributed this to UK Government policy, 18 per cent attributed it to Scottish Government policy and 37 per cent to "some other reason".

The majority of respondents - 60 perf cent - were satisfied with the way the NHS was being run, down slightly from 62 per cent in 2015.

More than a third thought standards in the health service had fallen.

Of those, 40 perfc ent attributed this to UK Government policy, 25 per cent attributed to Scottish Government policy and 18 perf cent to "some other reason".

Finance Secretary Derek Mackay said: "It's clear that the people of Scotland trust the Scottish Government to listen to their views and act fairly and in their best interests.

"Our commitment to being the most open, transparent and accessible government ever is reflected in the survey's responses, showing that our approach to travelling cabinets, wide-ranging online engagement and public meetings is giving people the chance to tell us what matters to them.

"The economy continues to be the highest priority for the people of Scotland, which is a priority we share, and we are continuing to make progress on our ambition to boost inclusive economic growth and raise productivity."

Scottish Conservative MSP Annie Wells said: "This study shows that while people care about a range of issues, they realise the success of the economy underpins almost everything.

"The SNP likes to pretend it is serious about reducing inequality.

"But by obsessing about another independence referendum instead of boosting growth and public finances, it is making a mistake.

"People are increasingly of that view and the SNP ought to listen to the concerning results which have emerged from this study."

Scottish Conservative MSP Annie Wells said: "This study shows that while people care about a range of issues, they realise the success of the economy underpins almost everything.

"The SNP likes to pretend it is serious about reducing inequality.

"But by obsessing about another independence referendum instead of boosting growth and public finances, it is making a mistake.

"People are increasingly of that view and the SNP ought to listen to the concerning results which have emerged from this study."