Budget 2008: Ten-point lead for Tories after Labour’s income tax troubles
Labour in-fighting over the decision to scrap the 10p income tax band has seen the Conservative party build a ten-point lead, according to a new poll.
Labour’s approval ratings have fallen following the contentious move with David Cameron’s Conservative party seen as more capable of guiding the UK through the credit crunch crisis.
A poll carried out by Populus for the Sunday Mirror newspaper gives the Tories a ten-point lead on 40 per cent, with Labour having slipped three per cent to 30 per cent since the last Populus survey.
The Liberal Democrats have also gained two points in the poll with 19 per cent support, in a study that would see David Cameron elected with a majority of 25 seats should the results be repeated at a general election.
Some 31 per cent of respondents said they saw the Tories as capable of steering Britain through current economic problems, compared with 29 per cent support for Labour.
A growing number of Labour MPs have decried the decision to abandon the 10p income tax band, claiming it could be seen as a punitive measure against the poor.
But treasury minister Yvette Cooper yesterday ruled out any possibility of reversing the controversial move.
You have to remember, of course, that when you have a major package of changes like this it isn’t possible to help everyone in any one Budget,” she said.
When asked whether compensation for the lowest earners affected by the decision was a possibility, she responded: “What I’m saying is that for those who haven’t benefited from this year’s package of reforms, they will have benefited already from previous Budgets, from previous changes.”
The Populus poll was carried out on Wednesday and Thursday and involved the interviewing of 1,006 adults across the country.
