Majority of Britons think Boris Johnson’s government is doing badly at running the country

• Three in five (58%) support Boris Johnson resigning as Prime Minister
• But only around a third (36%) think Keir Starmer’s Labour party would do a better job running the country

A new Ipsos poll conducted 25-26 May, after the publication of Sue Gray’s report into parties at Downing Steet during the Covid-19 pandemic, finds that just over half (54%) now think Boris Johnson’s Government is doing badly at running the country (+5 points from early May). Fewer than three in ten (27%) think the Government is doing well (unchanged).

However, Britons are unconvinced about whether Keir Starmer’s Labour party would be an improvement. Around a third (36%) say they would do a better job (+3 points since early May), three in ten (29%) think they would make no difference (+4), and a similar proportion (27%) believe they would do a worse job (-4).

Around three in five (58%) now say they would support Boris Johnson resigning as Prime Minister, whereas just one in five (22%) would oppose it. These figures are comparable to levels seen in late January, marking a modest increase from the period immediately before the publication of Sue Gray’s full report at the start of the month (+4 points). 2019 Conservative voters are divided over his future (42% support him resigning, 39% oppose it). 

In comparison, nearer a third (35%) would support Keir Starmer resigning at Labour leader (-2 points since early May), whilst one in four (24%) would oppose it (+2). As with the Prime Minister, his own party voters from 2019 are divided with a third a piece either supporting or opposing his resignation (both 34%).

Confidence in Sue Gray / Metropolitan police

Meanwhile, the majority of the public are confident that the findings in Sue Gray’s final report are thorough (58%) and independent (54%). Although sizeable minorities say the opposite (32%, 37% respectively). They are less convinced that the report will lead to the right people being held accountable for any breaches of restrictions uncovered during the pandemic (41% confident vs. 50% not confident).

Public opinion is more divided when looking at the Metropolitan Police’s investigation. The public are split as to whether it was thorough (46% confident vs. 45% not confident), independent (46% vs. 44%) or led to the right people being held accountable (41% vs. 51%).

The public are paying attention to news about party leaders allegedly breaking Covid rules, with around half (53%) saying they are closely following stories about Keir Starmer being accused of this, and seven in ten (72%) paying attention to accusations about Boris Johnson. However, these issues are secondary to others, with 89% following stories about the rising cost of living closely and 82% following stories about the Russian invasion of Ukraine closely.

Keiran Pedley, Research Director at Ipsos, said of the findings: 

The publication of Sue Gray’s report does not appear to have led to a surge in support for Boris Johnson’s resignation but a clear majority still say they want him to go. The Conservatives will be concerned that increasing numbers of Britons think Boris Johnson’s government is doing a bad job running the country but comforted somewhat that many are unconvinced Keir Starmer’s Labour would do a better job. Meanwhile, looking beyond ‘partygate’, the cost of living continues to dominate the public’s attention and looks set to do so for some time yet.

Technical note

• Ipsos UK interviewed a representative quota sample of 1,025 adults aged 18-75 in Great Britain. Interviews took place on the online Omnibus using the Ipsos.Digital platform between 25th and 26th May 2022. Data has been weighted to the known offline population proportions for age, working status, social grade within gender, government office region and education. 
• Please note that trend data are taken from our regular Political Pulse survey of British adults aged 18+ , with those aged 75+ removed to ensure comparability.