Less than two months ago, the British electorate put the Labour Party in power following 14 years of Conservative Party power. As much as anything else, the July 4 election was about Britons’ desire for a change in leadership. The two major parties have been barely distinguishable on policy in recent years, and the election reflected an anti-incumbent fervor that is popping up throughout the West.
On paper, the election looked like a landslide for Labour, but the results reflected the quirkiness of the UK’s parliamentary system. The winner of a parliamentary election need only come in first place, and in some areas where candidates from as many as five or six parties vied for a seat, some of those winders came nowhere close to a majority. As a result, new Prime Minister Keir Starmer swept into power with the lowest vote share of any prime minister since 1832.
Starmer and Labour’s honeymoon period may be over more quickly than anybody expected. A new poll shows that a slim majority of British voters believe the UK is headed in the wrong direction.
The Ipsos poll surveyed 1,148 adults of voting age over a three-day period, and the results show that “22% said that they think things in Great Britain are heading in the right direction (-3 from Jul ’24), 52% wrong direction (+3), and 19% neither (N/C). This gives a net right direction of the country rating of -30, which is down from -24 last month (though still better than the previous two years).” That reflects a six-point drop in a month.
Related: UK Election Post-Mortem: How Bad Was the Night for Britain's Conservatives?
The poll also measured Britons’ thoughts about the leadership of various parties, and voters aren’t happy with any of them. Starmer’s net favorability is at zero, and that’s the only good news for British political leaders. Deputy PM Angela Rayner has a -3 net favorability, and other key Labour leaders fare a little bit worse. Leaders of other parties had even worse ratings, the worst of which was that of former PM and Conservative Party head Rishi Sunak, who clocked in with a -38 net favorability.
Labour has had a rough go of things since coming to power between the economy, riots, and a prison crisis, but Starmer and company could see further drops in their net favorability now that news has come to light that Labour heavyweights have been hiring donors for civil service positions. The Spectator’s gossip columnist Steerpike reported:
The lefty lot is also facing scrutiny over some rather curious civil service hires. First there was Ian Corfield’s appointment to the role of director of investment at the Treasury. The department has come under the spotlight after it emerged that the civil service watchdog was not informed of Corfield’s status as a Labour donor, despite the fact he has given more than £20,000 to the party over the last nine years – including £5,000 to now-Chancellor Rachel Reeves. At the weekend a second appointment attracted attention, after Emily Middleton was made a director general in the Department for Science and Technology. Middleton is another party donor, with the former businesswoman’s consultancy firm having given a whopping £67,000 [$86,971 at today's exchange rate] to the party. Crikey.
“One thing’s for sure: charges of cronyism will hardly help the public’s view of Sir Keir’s Labour lot,” Steerpike added. “Rules for thee but not for me…”
The trouble is that the British people put these folks in power for five years — unless Starmer calls a “snap election” sooner, which isn’t likely — so they’re in for a long half-decade with Labour at the helm. Things aren’t likely to get much better; they might even get worse for the UK.
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