Voters’ crushing verdict: Labour can win election... but only if they dump Ed
PRESSURE on embattled Ed Miliband grew last night after a survey showed Labour would have more chance of winning the next election if they dump him,
writes Simon Walters.
A Survation poll for the Mail on Sunday revealed that 31 per cent of Labour supporters back the party at the ballot box ‘because of’ Miliband, while 36 per cent do so ‘despite’ him.
By contrast, 48 per cent of Tories back the party because of Cameron, and 18 per cent support the party despite him.
The leadership popularity gap was repeated when voters were asked if they would be more likely to support a party if it had a new leader. Voters said ‘yes’ by a margin of 26 per cent in the case of Labour, compared to a margin of 13 per cent for the Tories.
The most common criticism of Miliband in the poll, which saw 1,017 adults questioned online on Friday, is that he lacks charisma and the ‘common touch’.
Cameron was also seen as lacking the common touch but the Prime Minister fared significantly better on charisma.
Mr Miliband will face further attacks today, with widespread forecasts of poor results in the European elections on top of similar disappointment in the town hall elections. The Labour leader, who has been criticised for failing to stop UKIP taking votes in his party’s Northern heartlands, is due to launch a fightback on Tuesday.
He will say in a speech: ‘I am determined to show people, including those who voted for UKIP, that we can change our country for the better.’
But a Shadow Minister said the attempt to win back voters was like ‘bolting the stable door after the UKIP horse has bolted’. The poll also revealed that Boris Johnson is the strong favourite to succeed Mr Cameron, backed by 44 per cent of Tories. He is followed by Theresa May and George Osborne.
Energy Secretary Ed Davey has emerged as Lib Dem favourite to succeed Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg, with support from 32 per cent of the party’s voters, followed by Treasury Chief Secretary Danny Alexander with Vince Cable a distant third place.