Only 11% of women, including just 22% of women who voted Labour last year, approve of the government’s record to date
Labour have been in government for nearly a year now, and it’s no secret that their actions haven’t been particularly well-received, with YouGov’s government approval tracker showing roughly four times as many Britons disapprove of their record so far than approve of it.
To take a deeper look at where government approval currently stands, we have merged together the last six weeks of our tracker to give us a sample of over 10,000 Britons. The figures give a government approval rate of 16% over this time period, with two-thirds (65%) disapproving.
Do Labour have a women problem?
Whichever way you look at government approval, there is a divide hidden underneath. While a similar 65% of men and women see the government’s performance in a negative light, women are nearly half as likely as men to approve, with just 11% positive about Labour’s record in office, compared to 20% of men.
And not only is it the case that women are significantly less likely to approve of the government than men overall, but this is also the case in every group of women and men.
For the third of 18-29 year old men (32%) who approve of the government, just one in seven women in the same age group do (14%). While the gender gap is narrower among older Britons, women are less satisfied with the government than men whether in their 50s (12% vs 20%), 60s (10% vs 16%) or if they’re over 70 (7% vs 10%).
A stark gender gap is present among Labour voters: while men who voted for the party last July are split 39% to 43% on whether or not they approve of the government, just 22% of women who backed Labour are supportive of their record, while half (49%) disapprove of it. In fact, men who voted Lib Dem are more positive about the government (31%) than women who voted Labour.
It is often among the groups most supportive of the government’s record where the gap between men and women is widest, with men in London roughly twice as likely to approve of the government (31%) than London’s women (16%), with a similar picture apparent among university-educated men and women (30% vs 16%).
However, it is with more economically disadvantaged women where the government typically record their worst approval scores, standing at just 7% among women with a low level of education and 8% among women classified as C2DEs, often taken to be those who live in a working-class household.
Government approval by age and education
Younger Britons are less negative about the government’s record than their elders. Less than half of 18-29 year olds (47%) and 55% of those in their 30s express disapproval in the government, compared to around two-thirds (64-68%) of those in their 40s or 50s, 75% of Britons in their 60s and 81% of those aged 70 and over.
Nonetheless, only a fifth of 18-29 year olds (22%) actively approve of the government’s performance, even if this is greater than the 9% of over 70s who do the same.
Education has become a particularly significant political divide in recent years, and this is no different when looking at government approval. Among those with at least a university degree, nearly a quarter (23%) see the government’s record positively, compared to 55% who judge it unfavourably.
While not positive in of itself, it is a relatively good review when compared to those whose highest qualification is a GCSE or lower, just 9% of whom approve of the government, while 76% disapprove.
Government approval by 2024 vote and EU referendum vote
Unhappiness with the government is so common that, even among those who voted for Labour last July, just 31% approve of their record in power, while nearly half (46%) disapprove of the Starmer government’s actions so far. This is only a little less negative than Lib Dem voters, just over half of whom (53%) feel the government has done a bad job.
More expectedly, disapproval in the government is highest among Reform UK (95%) and Conservative voters (84%), with nearly seven in ten of those who voted Green (68%) or SNP (69%) last July also unhappy with the government’s performance.
Approval is higher among Remainers (22%) than Leavers (8%), though a clear majority of those who voted to stay in the EU in 2016 (56%) disapprove of the government.
Even among those who say they are more likely than not to vote Labour in a future election, just 44% express approval in the government’s record, while 27% say they disapprove. Such negativity even among those who back the government
Government approval by housing tenure
Historically, social renters (renting from a council or housing association) were one of the groups most likely to back Labour: in the 2015 election, for instance, the proportion who voted Labour was double that of those who owned their own home outright.
Now, however, social renters are the least likely to approve of Labour’s record, with just 7% positive about what the government has achieved in office to date, while three quarters (74%) are negative. Twice as many owner occupiers (14%) approve of the government, though a similar number (73%) disapprove of Labour’s record.
Among those who own their house with a mortgage or rent from private landlords, one in five (19-20%) approve of the government’s record, while roughly three times as many disapprove (58-60%).
Government approval by household income
Traditional notions of Labour support are also defied by richer Britons being most likely to have a favourable view of the government’s record so far.
Just one in eight (12%) of those living in the lowest income households – those with an income of under £20,000 – approve of the government, compared to 28% of those with a household income above £70,000.
Even then, half of those living in the highest income households (52%) are still negative about Labour’s record, even if this is lower than the 65% of those in roughly average income households and 72% of those in households with an income below £20,000.
Government approval by region
Dissatisfaction in the government is apparent in every corner of the country, with disapproval in the government at least double the rate of approval in every region and nation in Great Britain. This is true in both traditionally Conservative regions of the country (e.g. net approval in the South East is -50) and those that historically supported Labour (net approval in Wales is -56).
To a degree, though, London is an exception. While in the other ten regions, approval is between 12-16% and disapproval somewhere between 64-71%, a quarter of Britons (25%) in the capital give the government a positive review, relative to half (52%) giving it a thumbs down.
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Photo: Getty
