Half say Labour is doing a bad job at delivering a mission-led government

A new Ipsos poll as Parliament goes into recess reveals that the public’s perception of Labour’s performance on its five key missions continues to be negative, as around half (48%) say that the party is doing a bad job in delivering a mission-led government.

Key findings 

• Mission led government? Only around a quarter (23%) of Britons say they know a great deal/fair amount about the government's five missions, while seven in ten (72%) say they don’t know very much/anything about them. Similarly, just three in 10 (29%) are familiar with the government’s Plan for Change, with 65% not knowing much/anything about it.
• Is Labour’s “mission led government” a success? Around half (48%) say that Labour is doing a bad job in delivering a mission-led government. Just 20% say they are doing a good job (25% neither).
• Are Labour governing differently to the Conservatives? Britons are split on whether the way Labour is governing feels similar (36%) or different (34%) to previous Conservative governments. A majority of 2024 Conservative voters (56%) say they are different, while just 43% of Labour voters say the same, with a third (33%) saying they are similar. Reform UK and Liberal Democrat voters are most likely to say Labour are governing in a way which feels similar to previous Conservative governments (both 45%).
• Current performance on the five missions: The British public continue to have negative views of the government’s performance on its missions. The missions to "kickstart economic growth" and "take back our streets" receive the poorest scores, with 52% of Britons saying the government is doing a bad job in both areas. The mission to "build an NHS fit for the future" also fares poorly, with 48% saying the government is doing a bad job. Public assessments of the government’s performance on ‘kickstart economic growth’, ‘build an NHS fit for the future’ and ‘take back our streets’ have all worsened since the start of the year.

• Future outlook: The public also remains pessimistic about Labour's ability to deliver on its missions by the next general election. 44% say Labour will do a bad job on "Building an NHS fit for the future" (up from 40% in April). “Take back our streets” also continues to elicit the most negativity, with half of the public (49%) saying that Labour will do a bad job (up from 44% in April).

• Who voters trust: The poll also reveals a fragmented political landscape when it comes to which party is trusted most to deliver on these key areas. Labour holds a narrow lead on being seen as the best party to improve the NHS (22%, ahead of Reform UK on 15%) and break down barriers to opportunity (20%, ahead of Reform on 15%). On economic growth, there is a near dead heat between Labour (19%) and the Conservatives (17%), with Reform UK also close behind (15%). Reform UK is seen as the best party to "take back our streets" by 24% of the public (ahead of Labour on 19%), while the Green party is seen as the best party to “make Britain a clean energy superpower” (25%, Labour on 15%). Notably, no single party commands the confidence of more than a quarter of the public on any of the five missions.

• Top priority: "Building an NHS fit for the future" remains the public's top priority among Labour's missions, chosen by 61% (little changed from April). This is followed by "Kickstarting economic growth" (35%) and "Taking back our streets" (34%, +4 from April).

Commenting on the findings, Gideon Skinner, Senior Director of UK Politics at Ipsos, said:

Taking stock after one year of government, our latest polling underscores a persistent and growing challenge for Labour. While it's not unusual for a new administration to see a dip in public satisfaction as it faces up to the hard yards of government, what is notable here are the consistently negative perceptions of Labour’s core, mission-led agenda. The fact that since the start of the year growing numbers are saying the government is doing a bad job delivering on key missions like the economy, crime, and the NHS should be a significant cause of concern in Number 10. These aren't peripheral issues; they are pillars of the government’s platform and key among the public’s priorities too.

It is also telling that the government's focus on taking a mission-led approach hasn’t really been picked up by the public.  While the missions themselves do reflect areas of public concern, few Britons are noticing a difference in the way Labour is governing, which suggests the government has more to do to get its message of delivery to cut through the noise of day-to-day politics.

The fragmentation of trust across the political landscape is also notable. No single party inspires a majority of public confidence on any of the five missions. While Labour holds a narrow lead on the NHS and breaking down barriers to opportunity, the dead heat on the economy with the Conservatives and Reform UK, and Reform UK's lead on 'taking back our streets', highlights a volatile and divided electorate. Whilst this suggests that voters are currently shopping around for the party they believe can best deliver on specific issues, it means there is still an opportunity for Labour – and for their opponents – to win back public confidence if they can convince Britons they can deliver the change they want to see.

Technical note

• Ipsos interviewed a representative sample of 1,094 adults aged 18-75 across Great Britain. Polling was conducted online between the 11th – 14th July 2025.  
• Data are weighted to match the profile of the population. All polls are subject to a wide range of potential sources of error.