The
British public are utterly frustrated with politicians, a poll for
the Daily Mail has found.
Three-quarters
of those questioned said the political class had failed to function
effectively and were not serving the interests of the country.
The
survey found that almost half want an early election and that MPs
should not have blocked one in a Commons vote on Wednesday, while
less than a third do not.
Boris
Johnson remains the most popular choice for prime minister, with a
20-point lead over Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn – who came in behind
those who gave the answer 'don't know'.
And
given the choice between a No Deal Brexit and accepting the Labour
leader in No 10, our poll found those questioned overwhelmingly chose
the former.
In
addition, more people agreed with Mr Johnson's decision to expel 21
Tory MPs who voted with Labour against a No Deal Brexit this week.
In
a surprise result, Mr Johnson was found to be more trusted on the NHS
than Mr Corbyn, despite the health service traditionally seen as the
preserve of Labour.
Numbers
aside, a 'stitch-up' between Mr Corbyn and Remain parties last night
scuppered Boris Johnson's bid for a snap election.
Labour,
the Lib Dems and Scots and Welsh nationalists have agreed to block
the public going to the polls before October 31.
It
leaves the Prime Minister in limbo, forced to choose between
resigning or defying a law passed by MPs ruling out a No Deal Brexit.
He has emphatically ruled out further delay.
Following
a torrid week in which he lost a string of Commons votes, lost his
majority and saw his own brother quit as a minister, Mr Johnson
struck a defiant note yesterday and hinted he could defy the anti No
Deal law.
Asked
about the possibility of asking the EU for an extension, he replied:
'I will not. I don't want a delay.'
Although
he remains more popular than Mr Corbyn, there has been a sharp
increase in the proportion believing he is doing a worse job than
they would have expected.
The
Conservative lead in the polls has also fallen to just five points.
They are now on 29 per cent (down two points), Labour on 24 per cent
(no change) and the Liberal Democrats on 18 per cent. The Brexit
Party has had a boost, rising three points to 17 per cent.
According
to the Electoral Calculus website, a general election would leave the
Conservatives 14 seats short of a majority. The Tories are forecast
to win 312 seats – down six – while Labour would be on 218 –
down 44. The Lib Dems would gain 36 seats to give them a tally of 48,
and the Brexit Party would pick up 15 seats.
The poll was carried out by Survation, which questioned 1,006 people on Thursday and yesterday.
Asked whether Britain's political class are functioning effectively and serving the interests of the country, just 13 per cent agreed. An astonishing 75 per cent said the political class was not functioning effectively, while 12 per cent said they did not know.
Asked whether they wanted an election, 48 per cent said they did and 31 per cent said they did not. The rest said that they did not know. More people said they opposed the MPs' vote to block Mr Johnson from calling an election, by 43 per cent to 35 per cent.
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