What do the British public want from their government after 2015? Well, unless things are really going to shift in British politics in the next few weeks, they still want the impossible: a Labour majority government led by David Cameron. According to a poll from ComRes/ITV News out this evening, 55 per cent said their favoured scenario is for David Cameron to remain Prime Minister, compared to 45 per cent for Ed Miliband. But 51 per cent would prefer Labour winning a majority of MPs — two points ahead of those who’d like to see a Tory majority.
This contradiction is not new. Cameron has always polled ahead of his party — one of the reasons rumoured leadership coups never amounted to anything — while the Labour brand remains more popular than Miliband. These numbers explain the election strategies of both parties: the Tories want to make the campaign about how useless Miliband is. Labour on the other hand want to paint the Conservatives as bad, dangerous people for the country.
Part of the explanation for the contradiction may be the issues currently top of voters’ minds. According to the ComRes poll, the public think managing the NHS should be the government’s biggest priority — a topic on which Labour is the most trusted party. Ukip is now the most trusted party on controlling immigration. In fact, out of the top five concerns, the Tories are only the most trusted party on one issue: reducing the budget deficit. This interactive chart shows you how the parties are trusted on key issues:
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Labour are very keen to fight this election on the NHS and so-called ‘cost of living crisis’ and this poll suggests they are successfully keeping those issues in voters’ minds. For the Conservatives, it’s all about the economy and the deficit, which are not currently top concerns. The Tories will hope to maintain and improve their small lead in voting intentions, so expect to hear even more about the long term economic plan for hardworking people.
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