Working class voters believe the government is failing to give families a decent standard of living, a poll has found.
The survey showed people think ministers are doing a bad job at running public services including the NHS, setting taxes and looking after pensioners. A YouGov poll, commissioned by the Progressive Policy Institute, revealed deep concerns about the running of the country.
Three-quarters (74%) of working class voters said the government is doing a bad job of managing the economy so that ordinary people get a decent standard of living. Just 18% disagreed. Some 71% said the provision of public services such as health and education was going badly, compared to 21% who said it was going well.
Similarly, 67% think the government is doing a poor job of ensuring there are fair taxes so that everyone who can contribute does so. Only 22% believed the opposite. On the provision of pensions for the elderly, 55% said ministers are doing a bad job, while 35% said they were doing a good job.
The results come as Labour launches a campaign warning that the Tory ambition to abolish national insurance completely would put the state pension at risk.
Claire Ainsley of the Progressive Policy Institute said: “Working-class voters across the country will be critical in deciding the outcome of this election, and are saying that the government Is failing to deliver its basic responsibilities well. Keir Starmer has said his goal is to make Labour the party of working people again, so will be focussed on delivering real change for ordinary people to get Britain working again.”
YouGov interviewed 2,063 adults online in Britain between May 2 and 7. It defined working class voters as those with a household income below £40,000 who do not hold degrees.
Labour has said it wants to put the economy at the centre of its election campaign. Rachel Reeves today confirmed she would not raise national insurance or income tax if she becomes Chancellor. She first made the pledge in an interview with the Mirror in January. Ms Reeves said she believes Labour are in “touching distance” of winning power.