Labour's First Year In Power Seen As Worse Than Tory Predecessors
5 min read
The Labour government is generally seen as worse than its recent Tory predecessors – but still preferred to today’s alternatives, a poll for PoliticsHome has found.
To mark the first anniversary of Labour's landslide general election victory, Thinks Insight & Strategy surveyed 2,082 people about the party's first year in power.
The research, carried out between 27-29 June, found that the public currently sees the Keir Starmer administration as worse than the Conservative governments led by former prime ministers Boris Johnson, Liz Truss and Rishi Sunak in the majority of areas polled.
On having a clear plan for the country, 38 per cent said Labour was worse than the recent Tory administrations, while 23 per cent said Labour was better.
Respondents also said Labour was worse at delivering positive change (37 per cent said Labour was worse to 23 per cent who said Labour was better) and keeping promises (45 per cent said Labour was worse to 18 per cent who said Labour was better).
The current Labour government was also seen as worse than the recent Conservative administrations at improving the cost of living (44 per cent said Labour was worse to 15 per cent who said it was better) and supporting the poorest and most vulnerable (44 per cent said Labour was worse to 16 per cent who said Labour was better).
Of the 10 areas polled, the Starmer administration was seen as better than its Tory predecessors in two areas: improving the NHS (27 per cent to 26 per cent) and avoiding scandal and controversy (32 per cent v 28 per cent).
Thinks Insight & Strategy
The findings shared exclusively with PoliticsHome paint a gloomy picture for Labour as it reflects on its first year in power.
During that time, the ratings of both the party and Starmer have fallen sharply, while the Prime Minister has regularly been accused of lacking a clear vision for the country.
That said, the findings also include glimmers of hope for the government as it enters its second year in office.
The new research found that Labour was seen as better than today's Conservatives, Reform UK, Liberal Democrats and 'another party' in the majority of policy areas polled, including improving the cost of living, improving NHS waiting times, and getting the economy growing again.
And when asked who would make the best government for the UK right now, Labour led by Starmer was preferred over both a Reform government led by Nigel Farage (55 per cent vs 45 per cent) and a Conservative government led by Kemi Badenoch (52 per cent vs 48 per cent).
Ben Shimshon, co-founder and CEO of Thinks Insight & Strategy, told PoliticsHome: "The 20-30 per cent who are seriously considering voting Reform UK often feel highly certain about their choice, and pleased to have abandoned what they see as the failing mainstream parties.
"This study shows that many others feel lost and unsure where to turn.
"For many 2024 Labour voters, and indeed for significant minorities of Lib Dem and Green voters, the prospect of Reform is anathema, and the Conservatives simply don’t feature in their thinking. The result is that, for many voters, Labour still feels the least worst option."
What the findings do suggest, however, is that government communications are an area where there is room for improvement after one year in power.
Thinks Insight & Strategy put 19 political events, issues and announcements that have happened since Labour entered power to respondents and asked which they were aware of. Of those that they were aware of, they asked how it made them feel about the government.
The original decision to means-test winter fuel support was the most well-known, with 68 per cent of respondents saying that they were aware of it. It was also the most unpopular policy decision, with a net positivity of minus 70.
This particular finding is unlikely to come as a surprise to Labour MPs, who warned the government at the time that the decision to curtail the support had generated a strong, negative public reaction.
The subsequent winter fuel U-turn was the third most well-known event, with 60 per cent saying they had heard of it. This decision had a net positivity of plus 22.
The announcement of an extra £28bn for the NHS every year was the most popular event, issue or announcement, with net positivity at plus 50.
However, it was also the least well-known, with less than a third (31 per cent) saying they were aware of it.
Thinks Insight & Strategy
"When events and actions have cut through, these have often been the ones which most viscerally contradict voters expectations of a Labour government – with cuts to Winter Fuel Allowance the most powerful example," said Shimshon.
Julia Buckley, Labour MP for Shrewsbury, expressed her frustration with government communications when she appeared on this week's episode of The Rundown podcast, telling PoliticsHome: "We've got this great long list of things that we have passed in the year that people don't know about."
“The comms and the messaging may appear chaotic, but behind the scenes, a huge amount has happened," she said, admitting that Nigel Farage's Reform UK has outperformed Labour on comms.
"They can simplify this whole thing into three words that everybody down the pub understands, and they are light years ahead of us on that. That's what we need to get better at.
"We need to learn from Reform how to communicate really complicated, long-term policy issues into really simple messaging that people can understand, and then can appreciate what we've actually done."
