Sir Keir Starmer has this week recorded his highest ever rating as the best potential prime minister, in a clear indication that Boris Johnson failed in his attempt to smear the Labour leader by falsely linking him to paedophile Jimmy Savile.
Meanwhile, Mr Johnson’s most likely successor as Conservative leader, chancellor Rishi Sunak, slumped to his lowest rating yet in the regular Savanta ComRes survey, as memories of his pandemic support packages fade in the face of the current cost-of-living crisis.
The monthly poll put Labour a comfortable nine points ahead of Tories on 41 per cent to 32 in general election voting intentions, though the margin had tightened by two points since the last time the question was asked.
Mr Johnson’s personal ratings as best PM edged up by three points since January, in an apparent sign of public fury over lockdown-busting parties at 10 Downing subsiding.
But he still trailed Starmer by 31 to 39 per cent, with the Labour leader also gaining three points to reach his highest rating since the monthly political tracker began in May 2020.
Recommended Starmer urges Conservatives to examine party donations for Russian influence Why is the UK suffering a cost-of-living squeeze and what action is being taken? ‘Almost half of Britons know little or nothing about National Insurance rise’
Mr Sunak’s declining popularity was reflected in his Net Favourability score – calculated by subtracting the percentage unhappy with his performance from those who are satisfied – falling by seven points since last month to his lowest ever rating of +3.
UK news in pictures Show all 50
1/50UK news in pictures
UK news in pictures 15 February 2022 Hailey Duff, left, Vicky Wright, centre and Jennifer Dodds in action for Great Britsin during their women’s curling round robin match against Japan at the Beijing Winter Olympics. Team GB sealed a 10-4 victory
Reuters
UK news in pictures 14 February 2022 Members of the Household Cavalry walk past Wellington Arch and a large inflatable heart, on Valentine's Day in London
Reuters
UK news in pictures 13 February 2022 People in costume attend the Whitby Steampunk Weekend in Yorkshire
PA
UK news in pictures 12 February 2022 People in Parliament Square, London, take part in the People's Assembly nationwide protest about cost of living crisis
PA
UK news in pictures 11 February 2022 Romney sheep graze the grass around the dormant vines at Nyetimber's Manor Vineyard at West Chiltington in West Sussex. The herd from a local farm form part of Nyetimber's sustainability program and are utilised for vineyard maintenance, keeping the grass low, reducing the risk of frost, maintaining grass leys on the estate and saving the cost of fuel for mowing
PA
UK news in pictures 10 February 2022 Alice Wyllie looks at projections featuring details of some of the illustration plates during the press view for Audubon's Birds of America exhibition at the National Museum Of Scotland, Edinburgh
PA
UK news in pictures 9 February 2022 New arrival Upendi and mother Cheka in the bonobo enclosure at Twycross Zoo, Leicestershire
PA
UK news in pictures 8 February 2022 Workers move a crate containing Season's Greetings by street artist Banksy from a retail unit at Ty'r Orsaf, Port Talbot, prior to its journey to a temporary storage unit at an undisclosed location
PA
UK news in pictures 7 February 2022 Dog walkers enjoy the early morning sunrise at Tynemouth Beach in North Tyneside, on the north east coast of England
PA
UK news in pictures 6 February 2022 A Leicester City invades the pitch as Nottingham Forest celebrate scoring their side’s third goal of the game during the Emirates FA Cup fourth round match at the City Ground, Nottingham
PA
UK news in pictures 5 February 2022 Stadium staff remove a flare from the pitch during the Emirates FA Cup fourth round match at Selhurst Park
PA
UK news in pictures 4 February 2022 "The Nuba Survival" is a five-metre-tall statue of two skeletons locked in an embrace in Checkendon, Oxfordshire. The statue was created by local artist John Buckley
PA
UK news in pictures 3 February 2022 Kew horticulturists attending to the ‘Rising sun’ display at the Kew Orchid Festival: Costa Rica, at the Royal Botanic Gardens in Kew, west London
PA
UK news in pictures 2 February 2022 Protesters campaign against corruption in London
EPA
UK news in pictures 1 February 2022 Lorries queue for the Port of Dover in Kent, as the Dover TAP is enforced due to the high volume of lorries waiting to cross the Channel
PA
UK news in pictures 31 January 2022 Nelson Beaumont-Laurencia applies finishing touches to a sculpture of a tiger, commissioned by Manchester Business Improvement District to celebrate the Chinese New Year, is unveiled in St Ann’s Square
PA
UK news in pictures 30 January 2022 A house on Overhill terrace in Gateshead, lost its roof on 29 January after strong winds from Storm Malik battered northern parts of the UK
PA
UK news in pictures 29 January 2022 A newly painted bicycle sign is seen on the middle of the road at Westminster Bridge, as the new Highway Code rules start today together with giving pedestrians priority at junctions
Reuters
UK news in pictures 28 January 2022 School children take part in a rally in support of British Sign Language becoming a recognised language in the UK, outside the Houses of Parliament, Westminster, as the British Sign Language Private Members’ Bill, introduced by Rosie Cooper MP, reaches its second reading in the House
PA
UK news in pictures 27 January 2022 A rare six-week-old southern white rhino calf called Zawadi, explores her paddock for the first time at Africa Alive! in Lowestoft
PA
UK news in pictures 26 January 2022 British Prime Minister Boris Johnson jogs with his dog Dilyn, in London
REUTERS
UK news in pictures 25 January 2022 A member of staff looks at Francis Bacon’s work ‘Second Version of Triptych 1944’ on display in the Francis Bacon: Man and Beast exhibition at the the Royal Academy of Arts in London
PA
UK news in pictures 24 January 2022 Rowers (front to back) Charlotte Irving, Kat Cordiner and Abby Johnston, on their way to shatter the world record for rowing across the Atlantic
PA
UK news in pictures 23 January 2022 A grey seal pup on the beach at Horsey Gap in Norfolk, as the pupping season draws to a close at one of the UK’s most important sites for the mammals
PA
UK news in pictures 22 January 2022 Participants prepare to take part in the Crisis icebreaker cold water challenge at Tooting Bec Lido in London
EPA
UK news in pictures 21 January 2022 Willesborough Windmill, a white smock mill built in 1869 is bathed in the morning sunshine as the moon sets behind in Ashford, Kent
PA
UK news in pictures 20 January 2022 A jet skier jumps the waves off the coast at Blyth in Northumberland
PA
UK news in pictures 19 January 2022 Britain’s Prince William and Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge, participate in a therapy session with individuals who have experienced the care system, during a visit to the Foundling Museum in London
REUTERS
UK news in pictures 18 January 2022 Surfers enter the sea as the sun rises over Tynemouth on the North East coast
PA
UK news in pictures 17 January 2022 Bonhams’ Danny McIlwraith holds a Nigerian polycrome carved wood mask during a photocall for the sale of the Jim Lennon Collection at Bonhams in Edinburgh
PA
UK news in pictures 16 January 2022 The moon rises above the Spinnaker Tower in Portsmouth, Hampshire
PA
UK news in pictures 15 January 2022 Demonstrators outside Downing Street during a ‘Kill The Bill’ protest against The Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Bill in London
PA
UK news in pictures 14 January 2022 Ecologist Emma Smart (left) and retired GP Dr Diana Warner outside HMP Bronzefield, in Surrey, following their release from the prison where Emma undertook a 26-day hunger strike during her incarceration. Ms Smart was sentenced in November, along with other members of Insulate Britain, to serve four months for breaking a High Court injunction by taking part in a blockade at junction 25 of the M25 motorway during the morning rush hour on 8 October last year
PA
UK news in pictures 13 January 2022 A TV presenter holds a copy of a newspaper outside 10 Downing Streetafter the Prime Minister apologised for attending a gathering of colleagues in the Number Ten garden in May 2020, while the UK was in strict lockdown due to the Coronavirus pandemic
Getty
UK news in pictures 12 January 2022 Fitness guru Derrick Evans after receiving an MBE during an investiture ceremony at Windsor Castle
PA
UK news in pictures 11 January 2022 A couple walk underneath an umbrella during wet weather on Westminster Bridge in central London
PA
UK news in pictures 10 January 2022 A jogger passes the Covid Memorial Wall in London
AP
UK news in pictures 9 January 2021 The sun rises over horses at Seaton Sluice in Northumberland
PA
UK news in pictures 8 January 2022 Riders compete during the Veterans Men's race at the UK Cyclo-Cross National Championships 2022 in Ardingly, south of London
AFP/Getty
UK news in pictures 7 January 2022 A dog looks out of a car window at the wintry conditions in Killeshin, Co. Laois
PA
UK news in pictures 6 January 2022 People walk through frost and mist alongside a frozen lake during sunrise in Bushy Park, London
REUTERS
UK news in pictures 5 January 2022 A skier jumps on the slopes at Allenheads in the Pennines to the north of Weardale in Northumberland
PA
UK news in pictures 4 January 2022 Freshly-fallen snow covers houses in Corbridge, near Hexham in Northumberland
PA
UK news in pictures 3 January 2022 Dean Morrison, 13, receives his Covid-19 vaccine from student nurse Anthony McLaughlin during a vaccination clinic at the Glasgow Central Mosque
PA
UK news in pictures 2 January 2022 Konastantinos Tsimikas of Liverpool with Chelsea’s Mason Mount during the Premier League match at Stamfrod Bridge
Liverpool FC/Getty
UK news in pictures 1 January 2022 New Year’s Eve Lasers, drones and fireworks illuminate the sky in front of the Royal Naval College in Greenwich shortly after midnight in London
EPA
UK news in pictures 31 December 2021 Competitors in fancy dress run across the Pennine tops near Haworth, West Yorkshire, in the annual Auld Lang Syne Fell race which attracts hundreds of runners every year
PA
UK news in pictures 30 December 2021 Sunrise at Bamburgh Castle in Northumberland
PA
UK news in pictures 29 December 2021 The Very Revd Dr Robert Willis, Dean of Canterbury Cathedral, looks at Becket, a six month old red-billed chough as he visits Wildwood Wildlife Park in Kent on the anniversary of the murder of Thomas Becket
PA
UK news in pictures 28 December 2021 Troops of the Household Cavalry are seen reflected in a puddle during the changing of the Queen’s Life Guard, on Horse Guards Parade, in central London
PA
While still positive, the rating marks a steep decline from the highpoint of his popularity, which reached +30 in September 2020, when millions of people were receiving furlough payments, and well below the +17 rating recorded by the chancellor this time last year.
With the withdrawal of the ￡20 universal credit uplift and the introduction of a 1.25 per cent hike in employees’ and employers’ national insurance contributions eating into his popularity, Savanta ComRes political research director Chris Hopkins said some may start questioning Sunak’s position as heir apparent to the prime minister.
“It’s always been easy for Sunak to be liked, due to his polished parliamentary performances and pandemic-related giveaways,” said Mr Hopkins.
“But that could only last for so long and we are finally seeing him come back to the pack, with a relatively low favourability rating.
“I would only expect that to drop further as the cost-of-living crisis bites, and particularly in April when national insurance is due to rise and his supporters may begin to wonder if he’s the candidate to back to replace the prime minister in the long run.”
Johnson’s favourability rating stood at –34 – a three-point improvement on last month – while Starmer’s was down two points to –6.
Around one-sixth (18 per cent) of those who backed the Tories in the 2019 general election now say that Sir Keir would be their choice for PM, against just 59 per cent who have stuck with Johnson.
Conversely, seven in 10 Labour voters (71 per cent) say that Starmer would be the best PM, although one in five say it would be Johnson (19 per cent).
Elsewhere in the tracker, almost half of UK adults say that they are pessimistic about the economy in 2022 (46 per cent), with just three in 10 saying they feel optimistic about it (30 per cent).
Recommended UK inflation rises at fastest rate in almost 30 years Starmer urges action to tackle rising cost of living The worst household appliances to leave on standby
– Savanta ComRes interviewed 2,226 UK adults online between 11 and 13 February.