According to the most recent Opinium poll for the Observer, three out of the four Tory MPs who are considered the prime candidates to replace Rishi Sunak would struggle even more than the current prime minister in a general election if they were to face Keir Starmer.
There has been recent speculation about the Conservative party’s leadership, as rumors have emerged about a plan to remove Sunak and replace him with Penny Mordaunt, the current leader of the House, before the upcoming election.
However, according to Opinium’s findings, if there were to be a competition, only one of the four potential successors for Sunak would actually have a positive impact on the Tory vote. These four potential replacements are Mordaunt, James Cleverly, Suella Braverman (the current home secretary), and Kemi Badenoch (the current business and trade secretary).
Even in this scenario, the “Mordaunt bounce” would only result in a small gain and ultimately lead to a significant loss.
In a survey conducted by Opinium, the majority of voters expressed a preference for a Labour government led by Starmer over a Tory government led by Sunak. The lead for Labour under Starmer was found to be 18 points. However, if Mordaunt were to lead the Tories against Starmer, the lead for Labour would decrease to 15 points. Despite this, Labour would still hold a significant majority in the House of Commons.
If Braverman or Badenoch took over leadership of the Tories, it would cause the Labour’s lead to widen to 24 points. If Cleverly were to lead, it would increase to 21 points.
In general, when asked about their voting preferences without mentioning specific leaders, Labour’s lead remained at 16 points, the same as two weeks ago. Labour has 41%, the Conservatives have 25%, Reform has 11%, the Liberal Democrats have 10%, and the Greens have 8%.
According to a recent poll by Labour, a majority of 2019 Tory supporters (61%, according to their own survey) now back their proposal for a state-owned company called Great British Energy. This plan aims to ensure energy independence for the country and lower prices.
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 remarked that it was positive to see numerous Tories in 2019 showing support for Labour’s energy and green initiatives. He stated that the Conservative party’s stance against a publicly owned energy company is narrow-minded and harmful. Even their own supporters recognize that it’s absurd for foreign governments to gain profits from our energy system while British families struggle to pay increasing bills.
Source: theguardian.com
