The most recent Opinium poll for the Observer indicates that three of the four potential Tory MP replacements for Rishi Sunak would perform even worse than the current prime minister in a general election against Keir Starmer.
Speculation about a potential change in leadership within the Conservative party has arisen in recent days. Reports have emerged of a potential plan to remove Rishi Sunak from his position and instead have Penny Mordaunt, the leader of the House, take his place before the next election.
However, Opinium discovered that if there were to be a competition among the potential replacements for Sunak, including Mordaunt, James Cleverly, the Home Secretary, Suella Braverman, the former Home Secretary, and Kemi Badenoch, the Business and Trade Secretary, only Mordaunt would have a beneficial impact on the Tory vote.
However, even in this scenario, the “Mordaunt bounce” would only have minimal impact and ultimately result in a significant loss.
According to Opinium’s poll, if given the choice between a Conservative government led by Sunak or a Labour government led by Starmer, the majority of voters would favor Labour with an 18-point lead. However, if Mordaunt were to lead the Tories against Starmer, Labour would still hold a 15-point advantage. This would result in a significant majority for Labour in the House of Commons.
If Braverman or Badenoch were chosen to lead the Tories, the lead between Labour and the Tories would widen to 24 points. If Cleverly became the leader, the lead would increase to 21 points.
In general, when individuals were asked about their preferred political party without mentioning specific leaders, Labour maintained its 16-point lead from two weeks ago. Currently, Labour has 41% support, followed by the Conservatives with 25%, Reform with 11%, the Liberal Democrats with 10%, and the Greens with 8%.
According to their own polling, Labour asserts that a significant majority of 2019 Conservative voters (61%) now endorse their proposal for a state-owned company called Great British Energy. This company is aimed at ensuring the nation’s energy self-sufficiency and reducing costs.
Despite having recently abandoned their plans to spend £28bn a year on green investment, Starmer and shadow energy secretary Ed Miliband will this week promote the party’s scaled-back ideas on the latest of Starmer’s missions tours, focusing on its aim to turn the UK into a “clean energy superpower”.
Miliband noted the positive trend of 2019 Conservatives showing support for Labour’s energy and environmental initiatives. He criticized the Conservative party for their narrow-minded and detrimental stance against a publicly owned energy company. He also pointed out the absurdity that governments from other nations profit from the UK’s energy system while British families face financial challenges due to increasing bills.
Source: theguardian.com
