Majority of Voters Still View the Conservative Party Unfavourably
Ipsos MORI have published their Political Pulse report for November. The headline finding is that a majority of voters still disapprove of the Conservative Party, with the figure now at 52%. Perhaps more strikingly, though, is the number with a favourable view: just 20% view the party positively – less than the Liberal Democrats and the Greens – with only 5% holding a "very favourable" view.
To make matters worse, 60% of Conservative 2019 voters hold either an unfavourable or neutral view on the party. There is a silver lining for the Conservatives, though: they've improved by 4% since last month. Although this is by no means a groundswell, and is partially attributable to the one-off effect of a new leader, it does mark progress – and suggests the damage dealt by the Liz Truss premiership is at least somewhat repairable.
Elsewhere, the poll finds neither major party leader has a positive approval rating. Keir Starmer sits at -6%, marginally ahead of Rishi Sunak on -10%. This is yet more evidence that, on a personal level, Sunak and Starmer are far closer than their parties. Starmer's own figure is a significant fall on October, likely reflective of the fact previous polling was conducted as Labour's popularity peaked, when their voter intention ratings reaching around 10% higher than it is now.
Whilst the report points out that Matt Hancock's favourability has remained constant, despite his appearance on I'm a Celebrity, looking into how this breaks down by age reveals a notable pattern.
Hancock's approval is now strongly related to age. As a voter gets older, they are less likely to hold a favourable view of the former Health Secretary. This can be contrasted to June 2021, where older voters were more inclined to hold a positive view of him. It appears as though his appearance on I'm a Celebrity has polarised public opinion along the basis of age, with his approval rising amongst younger voters and declining amongst older people.
As Matt recently announced his intention to stand down as an MP to "communicate with people of all ages", he may be spurred on by his Gen Z resurgence. He should remember that his net favourability now sits at -44%.
