𝓤𝓷𝓲𝓽𝓮𝓭 𝓝𝓮𝔀𝓼

Britons have given a devastating verdict on Labour’s management of the economy with fewer than one in five people saying it is doing a good job. A mere 19% say Sir Keir Starmer’s Government is performing well when it comes to delivering long-term economic growth. Sixty-two percent say it is doing a bad job.

Just as many said the country is going in the wrong direction and two out of three told pollsters Opinium Labour’s overall plan for the economy is unclear. Large majorities also said the Government is doing a bad job when it came to rewarding hard work (64%) and helping people who are struggling (63%).

Opinium’s James Crouch said: “While world-shaping events are unfolding on the international stage, Keir Starmer’s Labour Government appears to be drifting at home. With the public seeing no clear direction and no convincing economic plan, the unsurprising result is persistently low approval ratings for the Government.”

Meanwhile, pollsters Ipsos found just 17% of the country had a favourable opinion of Sir Keir, with 59% unfavourable.

The Conservatives pointed to a raft of negative economic forecasts, accusing Chancellor Rachel Reeves of having “lost control”.

Shadow Chancellor Sir Mel Stride said: “The verdict from forecasters is brutal. Growth is expected to be even lower than the official forecasts at the Budget, and Labour’s grip on the economy gets weaker by the day. Rachel Reeves built her Budget on sand, and now independent economists are watching it wash away in real time.”

The Conservatives highlighted forecasts showing weaker expectations on key measures than those “published alongside Labour’s Autumn Budget by the independent Office for Budget Responsibility”. They warn “this shift undermines the Chancellor’s claims of stability and exposes the fragility of Rachel Reeves’ fiscal headroom.”

They state: “The median GDP growth forecast for 2026 is now 1.1 %, a clear downgrade compared with the OBR’s 1.4% assumption. Nominal GDP growth, which matters directly for tax receipts and fiscal headroom, is also weaker than Labour’s official case, with a median forecast of 3.5% versus the OBR’s 3.7%.

Sir Mel said: “The Autumn Budget 2025 will go down as one of the biggest assaults on working people in modern British history. A £26billion tax hike was imposed to fund higher welfare spending, because Keir Starmer and Rachel Reeves lack the backbone to take tough decisions and stand up to their own party.

“With every negative downgrade, Labour demonstrate they do not have a plan.”

A Treasury spokesperson said: “Last year we defied expectations on growth, with the OBR, Bank of England, IMF, OECD and BCC all upgrading their forecasts and the UK is expected to be the fastest growing European G7 economy this year and next.

“Since the election there have been six interest rate cuts since the election – the fastest pace in 17 years – helped by our commitment to economic stability and real wages are up more in the first year of this Government than the first decade under the previous government.”