Keir Starmer is now less popular than Rishi Sunak: PM suffers 45 point approval ratings drop since July

Sir Keir Starmer has suffered a huge drop in approval ratings among the British public since becoming Prime Minister, according to a shocking new poll.

The devastating figures compiled by Opinium show Sir Keir has plummeted by 45 points since July, with only 24% of voters believe he is doing a good job as PM.

Half of the public (50%) had a negative impression, taking his overall net rating to -26%, compared to +19% from his first approval rating as Prime Minister in July.

It means Starmer is now less popular than Conservative leader Rishi Sunak , who has a net approval rating of -25%.

Such a drop off will come as grim reading for the Labour party on the eve of its annual conference in Liverpool.

Just less than half of the public (45%) have a more negative view of Starmer and Labour since they came into office in July.

Only 27% of people believe the new government has been successful in its first few months, compared to 57% who believe it has been unsuccessful.

A third (32%) of 2024 Labour voters also think the government has not been a success.

The grim figures underline the hit to Sir Keir from the decision to scrap the winter fuel payment for 10million pensioners.

Sir Keir and Chancellor Rachel Reeves have also been making clear there is more pain to come in the Budget on October 30, with inheritance tax, capital gains and tax breaks on pensions in the crosshairs.

But despite this, there is still an even split between people who believe Labour are doing a better job than the previous Conservative government (30%) and those who think it is worse (34%).

More people also think Labour is no longer a united party (37%) compared to 32% who think it is, while almost half (45%) see it as out of touch with ordinary people.

This is likely related to the scrutiny Sir Keir has faced in recent weeks for taking over £100,000 worth of gifts and hospitality in the past five years.

This includes taking suits and spectacles worth thousands of pounds from Labour peer Lord Waheed Alli, who also gave high-end clothing to Sir Keir's wife Victoria.

Sir Keir has also been revealed to have accepted a luxury box at Arsenal's Emirates Stadium when he wants to watch his beloved Gunners.

In total he has received almost £40,000 in football tickets provided by the Premier League, according to Sky News.

It also emerged on Friday that Ms Rayner and Ms Reeves had both received thousands of pounds in funding for clothes that were previously declared as generic office support.

The Financial Times reported that Deputy PM Angela Rayner received aid from Lord Alli, while Chancellor Rachel Reeves was backed by a donor called Juliet Rosenfeld.