71% see the Conservatives as divided

This morning's YouGov/Sun poll has got a lot of attention because it shows an extreme - CON 30%, LAB 45%, LDEM 11%, UKIP 9% - the biggest Labour lead since YouGov started doing their regular polls in 2002. Usual caveats apply - the polls that show striking figures normally end up being outliers, it's the underlying trend that counts. Even there though, it certainly looks as though the Conservative bounce from the referendum pledge has unwound and Labour are back into a comfortable double-figure lead.

More enlightening are the other figures from YouGov today. As usual a majority of people support the introduction of gay marriage (54% to 38%), and as I wrote on Sunday, the issue itself is not one that has particular salience or will move many voters come the general election in two years time. However, the damage that prolonged coverage of Conservative infighting (on gay marriage, and presumably the leadership plot rumours) is clear - 71% of people see the Conservatives as a divided party, only 10% see them as a united party. This is a question YouGov have been asking since 2003, and this is the highest ever proportion of people who have seen them as divided - more than during the 2005 leadership challenge, or just before IDS was defenestrated.