Labour Closes Year on Top in Britain as Lib-Dems Fall to Single Digits

All three main party leaders saw their approval rating drop in the last month of 2010.

The opposition Labour Party maintains the upper hand in Britain, as support for the Liberal Democrats has plummeted to its lowest level since the General Election, a new Angus Reid Public Opinion poll has found.

In the online survey of a representative sample of 2,003 British adults, 41 per cent of decided voters and leaners (+1 since late November) say they would support the Labour candidate in their constituency in the next General Election.

The Conservative Party is second with 35 per cent (=), followed by their coalition partners—the Liberal Democrats—with nine per cent (-4).

The United Kingdom Independence Party (UKIP) is next on the list with five per cent, followed by the Green Party with three per cent, the Scottish National Party (SNP) also with three per cent, the British National Party (BNP) with two per cent, and Plaid Cymru with one per cent.

Labour now has a ten-point lead over the Tories in London (45% to 35%) and a 14-point advantage in the North (46% to 32%). The Tories are slightly ahead in the South of England (41% to 37%), while the two main parties are tied in Midlands and Wales (both at 39%). In Scotland, Labour is ahead of the SNP by eight points (42% to 34%).

The approval rating for Prime Minister David Cameron dropped two points to 42 per cent this month. Since the start of the new Government, the disapproval rating for Cameron has practically doubled, and is now hovering around the 50 per cent mark (49%).

Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg’s approval rating fell to 31 per cent (-5). Britons are now more likely to disapprove of Clegg’s actions than to support them by a 2-to-1 margin.

The approval rating for Opposition Leader Ed Miliband also dropped two points and is now at 31 per cent, while two-in-five respondents (39%) disapprove of his actions.

The last month of 2010 provides a sobering result for the Lib-Dems, following the student protests over the increase in tuition fees. The party has fallen below the 10 per cent plateau, and three-in-five Britons are now disapproving of Nick Clegg. The Conservatives are holding on to their base—with three consecutive months at 35 per cent—but confidence in Cameron continues to erode. For Labour, the first place showing does not assuage the low approval rating for Miliband, and shows that support is not particularly solid at this point.

Source: http://www.angus-reid.com