Starmer is more trusted than Sunak to carry out the prime minister's own priorities

Voters said they trust Sir Keir Starmer more than Rishi Sunak about the prime minister's own priorities

Sir Keir Starmer trusts A new opinion poll has shown voters have more confidence in Rishi Sunak to deliver on four of the prime minister's own five priorities.

The Labor leader beat his Conservative opponent when it came to who could best halve inflation. , grow the economy, reduce public debt and reduce NHS waiting lists.

Mr Sunak scored better than Sir Keir only in stopping small migrant boats crossing the English Channel.< /p>

The results are from a survey of 1,500 adults conducted by Redfield & Wilton Strategies

The results partly reflect the Labor Party's significant lead over the Conservatives in opinion polls.

Mr Sunak inherited the post last fall, with Labor leading by more than 20 percentage points. . Labour's latest average polls still lead Labor by 19 points.

But the results also highlight the prime minister's political risk in focusing on five specific areas where indicators suggest things are not going according to plan.

The respondents were asked the question: “Who do you trust most in achieving your goals?” each of the following,” followed by a summary of each of Mr. Sunak's five priorities.

For halving inflation, 32 percent said Sir Keir and 27 percent said Mr. Sunak. The rest chose «none of them» or «don't know».

In terms of economic growth, 34% said Sir Keir and 29% said Mr. Sunak.

Regarding public debt reduction, 30% said Sir Keir and 27% said Mr. Sunak.

Starmer Sunak's Key Promise Poll

Traditionally, economic literacy has been at the center of Tory campaign statements, meaning the numbers could very well be alarming in number 10.

The fourth priority that the Labor leader led his Tory counterpart was cutting NHS waiting lists: 37% of respondents chose Sir Keir and 18% of Mr. Sunak. .

The large gap in the NHS reflects Labor's traditional strength on health issues. The National Health Service was established under the Labor government after World War II.

Only in relation to stopping small boats, more people said they trusted the prime minister more than the Labor leader, with 27% of respondents supporting Mr. Sunaka. and Sir Keir's 20 percent.

The Tories have taken a much stronger stance on measures to curb the flow of small boats across the English Channel than the opposition, not least by proposing deportation to Rwanda.

But it's also notable that many of those surveyed said they didn't trust any of the main party leaders on issues—about one in three—indicative of broader political frustration.

Philip van Scheltinga, Director of Research at Redfield & Wilton Strategies, said: «Conservative strategists need to start thinking about the unthinkable: what happens if none of the five promises are even close to being fulfilled when 2024 rolls around?

«Rishi Sunak has worked hard to take on assume full responsibility for key policy objectives. Thinking that he could appropriate results that were not completely under his control from the start, he has now made himself a hostage to fate.

“Most voters believe that he has made little or no progress towards achieving any of them (and he'd rather have Keir Starmer do four of them) is what he'll have to take ultimate responsibility for. The clock is ticking.