Exclusive: Leadership and spending – poll reveals why people don’t trust Labour

Concerns over leadership, immigration policy and excessive spending are at the heart of why voters do not trust the Labour Party, according to polling published today.

Some two-thirds of people, 66 per cent, said they did not trust Labour, with less than a quarter (24 per cent) saying that they do trust the party.

Research carried out by YouGov asked those people who said they do not trust the party to select four reasons from a list, below, to explain their stance.

Of those who do not trust Labour, almost half (46 per cent) chose having “a weak leader” as a reason – the most common of the options available. Wasting money in government (41 per cent), borrowing too much (40 per cent) and allowing too much immigration (40 per cent) were also common choices, while almost a third (30 per cent) said it is because Labour “wouldn’t keep Britain safe”.

The polling was carried out after an article appeared on the left-wing Canary website, listing reasons people might not trust the Labour Party, such as Iraq, the attempt to unseat Jeremy Corbyn as leader this summer and New Labour spin.

However, none of the reasons scored as highly as the ones YouGov had previously found in its research.

Writing for LabourList today, YouGov pollster Laurence Janta-Lipinski said the evidence shows that “Labour must engage with the public as they are, not with the public as wished for by The Canary.”

The polling shows that Labour’s challenge, which Corbyn last week described as “an electoral mountain”, is even stiffer than many believe.

You can see the polling below. Full tables will be online by 9am.