Actually, there’s some solace for Miliband in today’s poll

Much excitement, today, about the fact that Ed Miliband is just as unpopular as Nick Clegg. A pre-Budget package by Ispos-MORI contains the finding that both party leaders are actively disliked by 51 per cent of the public. It’s a striking result, particularly after the tuition fee furore — yet, sadly, it isn’t new. It actually comes from the political monitor that Ipsos MORI released in January. They didn’t ask the question for their March political monitor.

So far as the Clegg-Miliband divide goes, the latest Ipsos MORI figures actually have this to offer us: net satisfaction with Miliband’s performance as party leader is at -5 per cent, whereas it’s at -22 per cent for Nick Clegg. So, not great for either leader, but considerably better for MiliE. Couple that with the finding that Ed Balls is ahead of George Osborne (by one point) on who would make the “most capable chancellor,” and the Labour leadership might even be mildly happy with these latest results.