Poll shows coalition riding high after 100 days
By politics.co.uk staff
The coalition government remains popular with voters after 100 days, a new YouGov poll suggests.
The survey found that 43% of voters thought the new government was performing better than the last one, with just 26% saying it performed worse.
David Cameron’s net approval rating stood at +20, with George Osborne on +7 and Nick Clegg on +5.
Sixty-two per cent of respondents thought the government would be able to cut the deficit but expectations of public service improvement were much lower. Just 32% thought they could improve schools or the NHS.
The 2015 timetable for withdrawal from Afghanistan was the most popular coalition policy so far, earning 80% approval. The ringfencing of the NHS budget came a close second, on 79%, while 77% approved of the decision to cut the number of MPs.
The VAT rise was one of the least popular policies, with just 20% support, but Michael Gove’s free schools policy received little backing too, with just 37% support.
There was a mixed message on the Lib Dem decision to enter the coalition, with 59% saying the party sold out its principles but 60% admitting it was the responsible thing to do at the time.
There is little expectation that the coalition will survive its full term. Forty-seven per cent of respondents expect it to last less than two years, while only 14% of people believe it can last more than four.
Forty per cent of voters expect the Tories to win the next election, although just under half believe it will be in coalition. Twenty-eight per cent believe Labour will win.
For the first time since YouGov started asking the question, the number of people saying they would vote ‘no’ in the AV referendum was higher than those who would support it. Thirty-seven say they would vote ‘yes’ while 38% said they would vote ‘no’.
