Labour has hit new lows across a range of measures
2025 has finally arrived, and Britons are divided on how the year ahead is looking. Asked in a Times survey in mid-December, 31% of Britons said they were optimistic for the year ahead, while 37% were pessimistic and 28% answered “neither”.
The start of the year also roughly coincides with the six month anniversary of Labour’s election victory. For this article, we have compiled a selection of new data from December to show where public opinion in the UK stands as we enter the new year.
Favourability ratings – Keir Starmer sinks to new low
Our polling for The Times in mid-December found that Keir Starmer’s net favourability rating had fallen to its lowest ever level (again), at -41. Two thirds of Britons said they had a negative view of the prime minister (66%) compared to only a quarter with a positive view (25%).
The majority of Labour voters (57%) still hold a favourable opinion of the party leader, but this has fallen considerably from 87% in the immediate aftermath of the general election. More than a third of Labour voters (36%) now have an unfavourable view of Starmer.
Meanwhile, for Kemi Badenoch, familiarity has bred contempt, with the new Tory leader becoming more unpopular the more well-known she is. In early November, 39% of Britons said they didn’t know enough about Badenoch to form an opinion, while among the rest she attained a net score of -20. Fast forward to mid-December and fewer people are in the dark about the Conservative leader (33%), but her net favourability rating has fallen to -31.
Nigel Farage, by contrast, has seen his favourability figures remain largely consistent: 28% of Britons have a favourable view of the Reform UK leader, while 62% have an unfavourable view, for a net rating of -34.
Farage is the big bogeyman for the Conservative party at the moment, with fears that the Tories could lose further voters still to the insurgent Reform UK. Those who hold such concerns will be worried to see that fully 45% of the 2024 Tory electorate have a favourable view of the Reform UK leader – although for the time being this still trails Kemi Badenoch’s 55%.
There is less appeal in the reverse direction – a notably lower rate of 35% of Reform UK voters say they have a positive opinion of the new Tory leader.
Government approval – Labour reaches lowest score to date
As with the prime minister’s personal approval ratings, the government over which he presides is likewise more unpopular than it has ever been. On 21-23 December, more than six in ten Britons (62%) say that they disapprove of the government’s record to date, while only 17% approve – this figure remained unchanged in our latest poll on 28-30 December.
Even Labour voters are now divided on the government they elected, with 38% having a negative view and 34% a positive one.
Indeed, almost half of Labour voters (46%) said in our Times survey in mid-December that they had expected Labour to do well but have been disappointed. Just 28% consider them to be doing well – a figure which falls to 10% among the wider public.
Most important issues facing the country
The economy continues to hold the top spot in the list of public concerns, with 52% of Britons including it in their list of up to three top issues facing the country. Immigration comes second, on 46%, and health on third, at 40%.
As ever, concerns differ dramatically between voters. For Labour voters, the economy and health are equally likely to be a top concern (55% and 53%), while immigration is a distant third on 28%. By contrast, for Tory voters immigration is clearly the key issue, with 71% citing it as a top concern, with the economy second on 59% and health third on 33%.
Economy - confidence in Labour sinks further, especially among Labour voters
On both inflation and the economy more broadly, approval of Labour’s performance has again reached new lows. Two thirds now say the government are handling inflation poorly (68%), and 71% say the same of the wider economy.
Among Labour voters, there was a notable uptick in negativity towards the government’s performance across most issues at the end of December, with attitudes towards economic performance now clearly underwater.
For instance, while in early and mid-December Labour voters were about tied on the government’s handling of inflation, in late December that gap widened significantly, with 49% now saying Labour are managing the issue poorly compared to 30% who say well.
The same story plays out when it comes to the wider economy – from division in early and mid-December to an almost 20-point gap now between Labour voters who think the government is handling the economy badly (51%) rather than well (32%).
In a comparative question format, the Labour party likewise fails to outperform their rivals who the public emphatically ousted from office barely six months ago.
When it comes to whether a Labour government led by Keir Starmer or a Conservative government led by Kemi Badenoch would be better at managing the economy, both sides score about equally, with 23% saying the former and 24% the latter.
Likewise, when it comes to keeping prices down, the Labour and Conservative options are again equally matched, at 19% and 20% respectively.
And when it comes to “improving living standards for people like you” – a pledge Starmer has made one of six targets for his government – the results are again about tied, with 22% thinking a Labour government would be better and 20% a Conservative government.
Labour does, at least, continue to hold leads over the Tories on helping people on the housing ladder, providing more jobs, and reducing the number of people in poverty.
Immigration - discontent climbs to new highs
Discontent with immigration hit the highest levels since our trackers began in 2019. In our 21-23 December poll, a record 70% of Britons said that immigration to the UK over the last 10 years has been too high – this includes a full 50% of the public who say it has been “much too high”.
Only 15% describe the level of immigration as “about right”, with a mere 3% saying it has been too low.
Likewise, the number of Britons saying that immigration over the last ten years has been “mostly bad for the country” has now reached 43% - again, the highest rate to date. Just 18% now see immigration over the past decade as having been mostly good.
This represents a significant shift since the beginning of the tracker series in summer 2019 – back then the number of people saying immigration had been mostly good and mostly bad had been equal, at 29% apiece.
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Photo: Getty
