LabourList readers want Osborne to quit

LabourList readers have backed Jeremy Corbyn’s decision to call on George Osborne to resign in the aftermath of a shambolic Budget.

Whilst the Chancellor’s popularity is at an all time low in the eyes of the general public, a solid 91 per cent of you think the Labour leadership was right to call for Osborne to go – although David Cameron has indicated the Chancellor’s position in safe.

Jeremy Corbyn called for Osborne to resign over the cuts to disability benefits – later dropped – which would have been the single biggest revenue-raiser in the Budget.

Only seven per cent thought Corbyn should not have called on Osborne to quit, with the rest saying they were unsure.

The results show LabourList readers agree on at least one area with Times readers: only 8 per cent of people think Osborne would make a good Prime Minister, according to a Times/YouGov poll. Ed Miliband, by comparison, once polled at 20 per cent.

As the reverberations of the Budget continue to be felt, LabourList readers are becoming more optimistic about the party’s poll rating. Labour has come out ahead of the Tories for the first time since Corbyn’s election as leader, with a one per cent lead in a recent Times poll. Labour’s poll rating was at 34 per cent, with the Tories on 33.

A majority of LabourList readers believe this marks a breakthrough in the eyes of the public: some 58 per cent agree and 23 per cent disagree.

This reflects the wide variance of opinions in the party with LabourList readers seemingly disagreeing on whether the poll is a result of Tory failures or Corbyn’s success in talking to the country. A notable 19 per cent of readers said they didn’t know whether to view the statistics as a breakthrough for the Labour leader.

Corbyn’s predecessor, Ed Miliband, briefly returned to frontline politics with a speech urging voters to remain in the EU. He talked about the way the bloc helps to tackle international issues such as the refugee crisis, tax evasion and climate change.

Some 78 per cent of readers agree with Ed M on climate change, saying remaining in the EU is the best way to tackle the threat.

Alan Johnson has been making the climate change argument, along with others, during the Labour In for Britain campaign, and it seems to be gaining traction with LabourList readers.

Only 10 per cent of readers disagreed with the suggestion, but a larger proportion – 12 per cent – said they did not know, potentially reflecting the widely cited lack of information about what the EU actually does on a day-to-day basis.