Cabinet league tables: LabourList-Survation poll on members’ favourites

Ed Miliband is the most liked member of the Labour cabinet among party members, a new exclusive poll by Survation for LabourList suggests.

The former Labour leader and current Energy Security and Net Zero Secretary topped the poll, with a net favourability of +68.6, despite his challenging time as party leader and the current government’s decisions to row back on green spending and expand airport capacity.

Miliband was closely followed by Deputy Prime Minister Angela Rayner, who received a net favourability of +62.95, with Culture Secretary and former leadership contender Lisa Nandy a distant third with +38.87.

Keir Starmer’s favorability among membership

Prime Minister Keir Starmer ranked 17th in the cabinet, with a net favourability of just +13.83 among LabourList readers who said they were party members.

Starmer’s favorability was weakest among 35 to 44-year-olds at just +0.76, but strongest among those slightly older, aged 45 to 54, with a favorability of +24.84.

By region, the Prime Minister received a negative approval rating in Scotland (-14) and in North West England (-3.62), while his support was strongest in London (+24.58) and in Wales (+23.74).

Reeves and Kendall hold negative approval among members

Some members of the Cabinet actually received a negative favorability rating, meaning more disapproval than approval, including Work and Pensions Secretary Liz Kendall and Chancellor Rachel Reeves.

Reeves received a rating of -11.19, with Kendall on -7.49. It comes notably amid rows over proposed cuts to the benefits system and to government departments in a bid to meet the government’s strict fiscal rules.

Despite being some bookmakers’ favourite to become the next Labour leader, Health Secretary Wes Streeting ranked below Keir Starmer, with a net favourability of +9.55.

How does Keir Starmer compare to other Labour leaders in recent history?

LabourList’s poll also saw readers rank Keir Starmer in the middle of Labour leaders the party has had over the last 40 years.

Readers ranked Tony Blair as the best Labour leader, followed by John Smith and Gordon Brown. Below Starmer, who placed fourth in the ranking, was Neil Kinnock (fifth), Ed Miliband (sixth) and, in last place, Jeremy Corbyn.

Supporters back Starmer to fight next election, but rate Burnham as a future contender

LabourList’s poll also found that almost a third (31.39%) thought a new leader should fight the next general election. However, a majority (52.3%) said that Starmer should remain in post to fight the next election in 2029.

Of those who said a new leader should take over from Keir Starmer, over half (56.65%) opted for Greater Manchester Mayor Andy Burnham, despite him not being an MP.

Angela Rayner was a distant second with 21.87%, followed by Yvette Cooper and Wes Streeting (5.27%) and Lisa Nandy (3.16%).

The first of more league tables to come

With more than 2,000 respondents, the poll is the first in a series of regular polls LabourList will be publishing in partnership with leading pollsters Survation, a member of the British Polling Council and a Market Research Society Partner. Respondents were asked to state if they are party members based in the UK, with results filtered to only include their responses and then weighted.

Tom Belger, editor of LabourList, said:”We’re delighted to be giving readers what they want today. If I had a pound for every time someone in the Labour fold suggested we publish cabinet favourability rankings, I’d be a millionaire.

“This league table is the first of many to come. There’s always interest in who’s up and who’s down, and who might be future leadership contenders, but the rankings also give interesting clues about members’ views on meatier questions of policy, competence and priorities.

‘We are excited to be working with Survation on this polling series, gauging the political temperature among supporters with Labour now back in power.

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“As the leading dedicated platform for all things Labour, we believe it’s important to hear and share what ordinary members nationwide have to say about the party’s direction and the latest political developments.

“We hope the polling can help inform and shape debate within Labour and beyond, ensuring the full range and nuances of views across the party on many issues are properly represented. If you’d like to send ideas for future questions, or share your thoughts on this or future surveys (on or off record), email [email protected].”

Damian Lyons Lowe, Chief Executive of Survation, said: “We are delighted to be working with LabourList on this new monthly polling project, providing a unique and consistent insight into the views of Labour members. By tracking opinion over time, we’ll be able to identify key trends among members that shape the party’s direction and policy priorities. This partnership will offer valuable data on what members think about the big issues facing Labour and the country.”

Survation surveyed 2022 LabourList readers, who said they were also members, between 4th and 18th March 2025 via LabourList’s database.  Data were weighted to the profile of party members by age, sex, region and 2020 Labour leadership election vote, targets for which were derived from the British Election Study and the results of the 2020 leadership election. Full data tables can be viewed on Survation’s website.

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