Six in 10 people find PM 'untrustworthy', poll finds

Six in 10 respondents said they regarded Boris Johnson as 'untrustworthy' - Credit: PA

Six in 10 people in Britain regard Boris Johnson as “untrustworthy”, new polling has revealed.

In an Ipsos MORI survey commissioned by the Evening Standard, only 35% of voters said they trusted the prime minister, compared to 59% who did not.

The findings will increase alarm in Tory circles after weeks of leaks and allegations about sleaze.

The poll found Labour leader Sir Keir Starmar had a 42% trust rating. Some 41% indicated they did not trust him.

It also found net satisfaction with the government and the prime minister had changed little from March. Both Johnson and Starmer have net negative ratings, but chancellor Rishi Sunak received a 58% approval rating. For Johnson the split is 44 satisfied /50 dissatisfied, and for Starmer it is 36/46.

Net satisfaction in Sir Keir among Labour supporters also fell over the past month. Only 51% said they were satisfied, while 39% were dissatisfied.

Former prime minister David Cameron suffered a big loss of trust, suggesting that the lobbying scandal has dented his reputation. Only 21% described him as trustworthy, down from 43% in 2013 when he was still at No 10. Some 74% deemed him untrustworthy, up from 51% in 2013.

Gideon Skinner, head of political research at Ipsos MORI said: “On honesty, Boris Johnson is clearly trumped by Keir Starmer, so this is an area of potential risk for him. However, his own supporters still trust him, and the public overall have never seen it as one of his strongest attributes … and as previous leaders such as Tony Blair have shown, you don’t have to be ahead on trust to win elections.

“The key question is whether and if these stories continue and start to change the public’s overall view on him as PM.”

Ipsos MORI interviewed 1090 adults across Britain by telephone from April 16 to 22.