'He is deeply unpopular'

Why everyone seems to have it in for Starmer

- By Peter Walker

In yet another confusing and chaotic period for British politics there is one thing on which just about everyone can agree: Keir Starmer is very unpopular.

His net favourability rating, the difference between those who have a positive or negative view of the prime minister, has been, depending on the pollster, anything from -50 to -57, a nadir exceeded only by Liz Truss. Recent focus group descriptions of Starmer include a “jellyfish” and a “doormat”.

In a political world increasingly atomised and feral, and fuelled by social media algorithms, open dislike is perhaps more common than in the past.

Even in this context, Starmer appears an outlier. The slightly more complex question is why. Labour is flagging in party polling, but it still generally scores better than the Conservatives, Liberal Democrats and Greens, whose leaders are by contrast only mildly disliked.

It can also seem slightly anomalous to have such national scorn for a leader who even critical voters might see as mild, while those who have worked with Starmer generally portray him as decent and caring, if very tough and focused at the same time.