Rishi Sunak’s claim that the local election results show the UK is heading for a hung parliament is “for the birds”, according to a top pollster.
Ben Page, global chief executive of Ipsos, said the Conservatives are as popular as “a cup of cold sick” after the prime minister insisted there was still all to play for in the general election.
His comments, on Times Radio, came after the prime minister admitted Labour were on course to win the election - but would fail to get a Commons majority.
Sunak based his comments on analysis of last week’s local election results, in which the Tories lost nearly 500 seats, by polling expert Michael Thrasher.
He put Labour’s national lead over the Conservatives at just seven points, well short of what opinion polls have been saying for months.
However, others pointed out that Thrasher’s forecast was based on the assumption that Scotland - where there were no local elections last week - would vote the same way it did in 2019, when Labour won just one seat.
A poll at the weekend suggested that number will go up to 28 as support for the SNP collapses.
The PM said: “These results suggest we are heading for a hung parliament with Labour as the largest party. Keir Starmer propped up in Downing Street by the SNP, Liberal Democrats and the Greens would be a disaster for Britain.”
Asked for his reaction to the PM’s remarks, Ben Page said: “I think it’s for the birds, to be honest, at the moment.
“If you look at the swing in Blackpool South, 30% or so, you look at these local election results, which we haven’t seen anything of this kind since just before Labour won a landslide in 1997.
“And finally, you look at Keir Starmer, and Keir Starmer isn’t particularly popular, but ... if you look at how people rate Keir Starmer as best possible candidate for being prime minister with Rishi Sunak, he’s got double the score of Rishi Sunak.”
He added: “Most people, they aren’t always sure exactly what Labour is, but they know that they don’t like the Conservatives.
“So the crumb of comfort is Keir Starmer’s personal ratings and the fact that people aren’t particularly enamoured with Labour. But unfortunately, next to that is a cup of cold sick, which is basically that people are utterly fed up with the Conservatives.”
Nevertheless, Sunak today doubled down on his claim.
He said: “The result of the next general election isn’t a foregone conclusion and indeed actually the situation is closer than many people are saying.”