LabourList-Survation poll: Reeves sees approval plummet among Labour members after Spring Statement

Rachel Reeves has seen an almost 30 percentage point drop in her favourability among Labour members since the Spring Statement, exclusive polling by Survation for LabourList has revealed.

While all of the cabinet saw a drop in their favourability following the Chancellor’s address to the House of Commons last week, with an average decline of around 15 percentage points, Reeves saw her favourability plummet from -11 earlier in March to -41 after the Spring Statement.

Prime Minister Keir Starmer and Work and Pensions Secretary Liz Kendall also saw similar drops in their approval among LabourList readers who said they were party members, with a decline of around 26 points each.

Energy Security and Net Zero Secretary Ed Miliband remains the most liked member of the cabinet, and saw the smallest decline in favourability, with a drop of less than four percentage points.

Starmer’s favourability down among members who backed him in leadership contest

The Prime Minister’s favourability was weakest among 45 and 54-year-olds at just shy of -27, but was strongest among 18 to 24-year-olds, albeit at -5.

By region, Starmer received a net negative approval rating in all regions of the country bar South East England (+2), Wales (+4) and London (+9). His approval was lowest in the East of England at just -38.

With the Prime Minister marking five years as Labour leader on Friday, Starmer’s favourability among those who backed him in the leadership contest stands at just over +16, down from +51 prior to the Spring Statement. His favourability stands at +4 among those who supported Lisa Nandy and -84 among those who backed Rebecca Long-Bailey.

Two-thirds say Labour is heading in wrong direction

LabourList’s poll also saw more than half of readers (54%) say that Starmer has governed badly since coming into office, compared to 45% believing he has governed well.

Two-thirds (68%) of those polled also said that the party is heading in the wrong direction, up from 49% only a few weeks ago, with 82% claiming Labour is communicating its message to the public badly.

‘Sharp drop suggests real unease at Spring Statement and political strategy’

Damian Lyons Lowe, chief executive of Survation, said: “This sharp drop in net favourability for senior Labour figures – including Rachel Reeves and Keir Starmer – suggests real unease among party members about both the Spring Statement’s content and its political strategy. Approval has not just dipped; it’s collapsed in key demographics and regions. As Labour marks five years under Starmer, this data points to a critical moment of reflection for the leadership.”

Tom Belger, editor of LabourList, said: “The drop in approval ratings should be ringing alarm bells around the cabinet table. It won”t make for pleasant reading for many in the Labour fold, but it is important the mood among the membership is reflected in public debate, and we’re glad to be helping shine a light on it through this new LabourList polling series with Survation.”

The poll is the latest in a series of regular polls LabourList is publishing in partnership with leading pollsters Survation, a member of the British Polling Council and a Market Research Society Partner.

Survation surveyed 1,053 LabourList readers who also said they were Labour Party members between March 26 and April 1, shortly after the Spring Statement.

Data was weighted to the profile of party members by age, sex, region and 2020 Labour leadership vote, targets for which were derived from the British Election Study and the results of the 2020 leadership election.

For more from LabourList, subscribe to our daily newsletter roundup of all things Labour – and follow us on  Bluesky, WhatsApp, Threads, X or Facebook .

• SHARE: If you have anything to share that we should be looking into or publishing about this story – or any other topic involving Labour– contact us (strictly anonymously if you wish) at [email protected].
• SUBSCRIBE: Sign up to LabourList’s morning email here for the best briefing on everything Labour, every weekday morning.
• DONATE: If you value our work, please chip in a few pounds a week and become one of our supporters, helping sustain and expand our coverage.
• PARTNER: If you or your organisation might be interested in partnering with us on sponsored events or projects, email [email protected].
• ADVERTISE: If your organisation would like to advertise or run sponsored pieces on LabourList‘s daily newsletter or website, contact our exclusive ad partners Total Politics at [email protected].