Witney Poll
QV1 How would you vote if there were a General Election tomorrow? QV2 Which party are you more inclined to support?
| 10-13 Feb | Witney GE '97 | |
| % | % | |
| Conservative | 43 | 43 |
| Labour | 36 | 31 |
| Liberal Democrat | 18 | 20 |
| Green | 2 | * |
| Democratic/UKIP/Referendum Party | * | 5 |
| Other | 1 | 1 |
| Undecided | 15 | n/a |
| Refused | 5 | n/a |
| Would not vote | 8 | n/a |
Q3 Are you satisfied or dissatisfied with ... ?
| Satisfied | Dissatisfied | Don't know | |
| % | % | % | |
| The way the Government is running the country | |||
| Witney 10-13 Feb | 34 | 54 | 12 |
| (GB 20-25 Jan) | 37 | 51 | 12 |
| The way Mr Blair is doing his job as Prime Minister | |||
| Witney 10-13 Feb | 46 | 44 | 10 |
| (GB 20-25 Jan) | 53 | 38 | 9 |
Q4 What is the name of the Member of Parliament for this constituency (Witney)?
| % | |
| Douglas Hurd | 1 |
| Evan Harris | 1 |
| Shaun Woodward | 44 |
| Tony Baldry | 1 |
| Other | 1 |
| Don't know | 53 |
Q5 Shaun Woodward is the current MP for Witney, elected as a Conservative in 1997. Last year he left the Conservative Party and joined the Labour Party. Were you aware of this, or not, before today?
| % | |
| Yes, was aware | 83 |
| No, was not aware | 16 |
| Don't know/Can't remember | 2 |
Q6 Do you think that Shaun Woodward was right or wrong to leave the Conservative Party and join the Labour Party?
| % | |
| Right | 36 |
| Wrong | 35 |
| Neither | 14 |
| Don't know | 15 |
Q7 How strongly do you agree or disagree with the following statement:
A) Shaun Woodward retains my confidence as MP for Witney even though he was elected as a Conservative MP but has now left the Conservative Party and joined the Labour Party
B) An MP who changes political parties should have to resign his/her seat and there should be a by-election in the constituency
| A | B | |
| % | % | |
| Strongly agree | 11 | 51 |
| Tend to agree | 22 | 21 |
| Neither agree nor disagree | 10 | 5 |
| Tend to disagree | 14 | 10 |
| Strongly disagree | 35 | 9 |
| Don't know | 8 | 0 |
Q8 Do you think that, as Shaun Woodward was elected as a Conservative MP but has now left the Conservative Party and joined the Labour Party, he should ...
| % | |
| Resign from Parliament so that a by-election can be held in this constituency | 57 |
| Remain the MP for Witney until the next General Election | 37 |
| Neither | 2 |
| Don't know | 4 |
Q9 If a by-election were held in this constituency before the next general election, how likely, if at all, would you be to get along and vote?
| % | |
| Certain not to vote | 6 |
| Very unlikely to vote | 6 |
| Fairly unlikely to vote | 6 |
| Fairly likely to vote | 16 |
| Very likely to vote | 17 |
| Certain to vote | 47 |
| Don't know | 3 |
If you did vote in a by-election here in Witney, which party would you vote for, assuming that Shaun Woodward was the Labour Party candidate?
Q10 Which party would you be most inclined to support?
| Certain to vote | ||
| % | % | |
| Conservative | 42 | 46 |
| Labour | 38 | 33 |
| Liberal Democrat | 18 | 20 |
| Green | 2 | * |
| Democratic/UKIP/Referendum Party | * | * |
| Other | 1 | * |
| Undecided | 12 | 6 |
| Refused | 4 | 5 |
| Would not vote | 4 | 1 |
Q11 If you did vote in a by-election here in Witney, which party would you vote for, assuming that Shaun Woodward was not the Labour Party candidate? Q12 Which party would you be inclined to support?
| Certain to vote | ||
| % | % | |
| Conservative | 42 | 47 |
| Labour | 37 | 32 |
| Liberal Democrat | 18 | 20 |
| Green | 2 | * |
| Democratic/UKIP/Referendum Party | * | * |
| Other | 1 | 0 |
| Undecided | 13 | 7 |
| Refused | 5 | 5 |
| Would not vote | 4 | * |
Q13 Which party did you vote at the last General Election in May 1997? If you did not vote, or cannot remember, please say so.
| All | All naming party | |
| % | % | |
| Conservative | 32 | 41 |
| Labour | 32 | 41 |
| Liberal Democrat | 11 | 14 |
| Green | * | * |
| Democratic/UKIP/Referendum Party | 1 | 1 |
| Other | 1 | 1 |
| Did not vote | 17 | - |
| Refused | 4 | - |
| Can't remember | 2 | - |
Q14 Which, if any, of these publications do you read regularly? By regularly I mean 3 out of every 4 issues.
| % | |
| Oxford Times | 29 |
| Free Newspaper | 28 |
| Oxford Mail | 32 |
| Witney Gazette | 26 |
| Banbury Guardian | 7 |
| Other | * |
| None of these | 28 |
Technical details
Poll conducted on behalf of the Woodward Resignation Commitee MORI interviewed a representative quota sample of 1,000 adults aged 18+. Interviews were carried out by telephone throughout the constituency between 10-13 February 2000. All respondents are eligible to vote in Witney. Data are weighted to the known population profile. Where percentages do not add up to exactly 100% this may be due to computer rounding, the exclusion of "don't knows" or to multiple answers. An asterisk (*) indicates a figure below one half of a percent.
