In a poll of 24,000 users on X, Keir Starmer was voted as having performed very poorly in his first year in government.
The poll, conducted by Politics UK, asked “How has Keir Starmer performed in his first year as Prime Minister?”.
Respondents chose between “Very good”, “good”, “bad” and “very bad”, with nearly three quarters voting negatively.
Only 5 per cent of people believed Keir Starmer has been performing “very good”, compared to 54 per cent arguing that his tenure has been very poor.
This comes after a series of controversial moves by the Labour government, including a turbulent House of Commons vote on the party’s landmark Welfare Bill. The Bill was highly criticised by Keir Starmer’s own backbenchers with the left-wing of his party rebelling, forcing major concessions to be made to the Bill.
Other decisions, like to increase defence spending to 5 per cent of GDP and to increase spending on education and local transport services have been more popular with voters, but major U-turns on welfare and winter fuel payments continue to splinter the party and put left-wing voters off.
Only 20 per cent of respondents thought he was doing a good job, with 21 per cent voting that he has had a bad time in government.
Various comments on the poll made people’s anger clear, with one saying: “Can we get an option below ‘very bad'”, while one went as far as calling Keir Starmer the “worst Prime Minister in the history of the UK.”
Others were left dissapointed by the party’s major U-turns, saying that they “promised lots, delivered little.”
Some were more moderate, saying that he has performed “somewhere in the middle”, with one saying he had an “extremely rocky start” but has “not been too bad since it hit 2025”.
Respondents pointed to a few major issues where they believe the PM has underperformed, including welfare, small boats and immigration, and elderly care.
Others welcomed moves by Keir Starmer to strengthen international ties with European partners, but wished that he would do more in the area while the topic of the NHS remained divisive, with some saying it has been one of Labour’s biggest strengths, and others arguing that reforms have not gone far enough.
A common theme was that he has had a mixed bag: “Great on the foreign stage, but abysmal here at home”, one respondent said.
The party remains divided on the inside, prior to the concessions 127 MPs signed an amendment to the Welfare Bill in an attempt to block it, with 49 holding out and rebelling against the Bill in the Commons.
Days later, when voting on proscribing Palestine Action as a terrorist organisation, nine Labour MPs voted against Yvette Cooper’s decision, led by the left-wing stalwart of the party Diane Abbot, this represents another pain point for Keir Starmer’s party: Its response to the war in Gaza.
It has already suffered shock losses to pro-Gaza Independent candidates in the 2024 General Election, but this has been worsened after a dramatic move on July 3rd when Zarah Sultana MP quit the party, claiming to be joining forces with former Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn, in large part due to the party’s stance on the issue.
She said in her statement that by the next general election, voters will be choosing between “socialism and barbarism”, and that the government’s lack of action on Palestine is costing them voters, saying that “the British people oppose it”.
In a recent YouGov poll, 18 per cent of Brits said they would consider voting for this new left-wing party if it as led by Corbyn, with it being particularly popular with young people and those in cities, namely London.
This could mean disaster for Labour, as even if they were unable to gain power, it could force Labour to shift back towards the left to ensure it doesn’t lose out to a Corbyn led protest vote, opening up a new left-wing opponent to the party beyond, or in partnership with, the Greens.
If Keir Starmer is to weather the storm of a splintered party, a resurgent Corbyn, and the thorn of Nigel Farage squeezing him on the right, it appears that something needs to budge, and a new strategy unveiled to avoid further U-turns and botched policy announcements.
