THE Labour Party has a 14-point lead over the Tories in an opinion poll commissioned by GB News.
The GB News People’s Poll found that 40% of voters would vote Labour in a general election, while 26% would vote Conservative, 11% for the Liberal Democrats, and 6% for the SNP.
When asked who would be the best Prime Minister given a choice between them, 41% said Sir Keir Starmer and 22% said Liz Truss.
Asked to choose between Rishi Sunak and Sir Keir, 40% opted for Sir Keir and 23% said Sunak.
People were asked what word or phrase first came to mind about Liz Truss and the top result was “untrustworthy”.
The GB News People’s Poll was conducted by People’s Polling and the results were first shown on Breakfast with Stephen Dixon and Anne Diamond.
Matthew Goodwin, professor of politics and international relations at the University of Kent, said: “The wheels are coming off.
“A 14-point lead for the Labour Party is essentially a Labour majority – were that to be replicated at the next general election.
“What we can see in these numbers is that actually a lot of people now have tuned out.
“They’re not not lining up behind the Conservatives, Keir Starmer and Labour are comfortably ahead in the polls and this really is going to pile pressure on whoever becomes the next leader of the party and whoever becomes the next Prime Minister.
“There is a risk here clearly in these numbers that if if things don’t change, the Conservatives are looking at a sort of 1997 or 2001 scenario where they not only lose that all important red wall in northern England, but they also lose a large chunk of that blue wall across the south and that would be a nightmare scenario for the party.”
He added: “The Conservative brand has become so tarnished over the last few months, that actually it’s infecting everybody within that party.
“And if Liz trust becomes the next Prime Minister, the immediate priority for her team will be to draw a line between the last administration and her administration, because that legacy, the chaos, the turmoil, the division, is already clearly damaging her brand in the eyes of many voters.”
Asked how much the Tory leadership election might have affected people’s views, he said: “If you ask people what are the top issues in the country, they say, I want to talk about the cost of living, I want to talk about ambulances, GPs, public services, but I also want to talk to some extent about things like migration, but they also want to talk about things that the candidates haven’t really gone anywhere near.
“It isn’t just the channel crossings, they want to talk about the level of overall migration in the country, which in the eyes of many people is still too high and that conversation hasn’t really been taking place.
“There’s a broader problem here facing the party. I think it’s got to come out of the gates with a compelling big bold idea about what it’s going to do over the next not just one or two years, but over the next four or five, six years – what’s the big plan for getting us through this cost of living crisis?”
He added: “There was an interesting piece a few days ago, which said that the sort of strategy in team Truss is essentially to survive the first 100 days, get through this winter, and then start to set out the priorities for the next few years in government.
“I’m not convinced that’s the right strategy.
“I think people are going to want to know where does she want to take the country. What’s the big bold plan for making the best out of Brexit, for seizing the advantages that comes with it?
“What’s the plan for defending the country’s borders for rebooting productivity and economic growth, all of those kinds of things. And I think that’s ultimately what they’re going to have to set out as quickly as possible.
“The Labour Party, what’s striking to me at least, is they are 14 points ahead despite doing very little at all.”
