What do the public think of Ken Clarke after his gaffe on Wednesday? According to a YouGov poll conducted during the 48 hours since his comments, a slim pluarlity think he should resign from his post as justice secretary:
Perhaps unsurpisingly, the majority of Labour supporters agree with their leader’s call for him to go, although a majority of Tories and two-thirds of Lib Dems think he ought to stay.
When it comes to the issue at the centre of the furore – reducing the sentence for someone who pleads guilty by up to half (as opposed to a third, as it stands now) – the public is much more set against Clarke:
More specifically, 33 per cent say there should be no reduction in sentences at all for people who plead guilty, whatever their crime. 51 per cent support the idea of a reduction for guilty pleas, but only for minor crimes – not rape or murder. Just 10 per cent agree that such a reduction should apply to any crime, however serious.
So, while the public pressure on Cameron to remove Ken Clarke may not be as intense as the red tops would like, the clear opposition to this particular proposal may well force yet another U-turn.
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