Fewer people are blaming the CON-LD coalition for the cuts than at any time since the March 2012 budget. See chart. twitter.com/MSmithsonPB/st…

— Mike Smithson (@MSmithsonPB) January 8, 2013

32 months after losing power LAB is still being blamed

YouGov’s regular tracker “Who’s most to blame for current spending cuts?” is one I return to time and time again because I believe it might be a good pointer by the time we get to 2015.

Today’s latest figures are refelected in the pie chart above. To me the key findimg is that just 25% blame the coalition – a figure that was last that low in March, at budget time.

Since then it has risen to 29% and the gap with last LAB government was down at 5%.

Now that’s changing which looks problematical to Labour.

We’ve heard the coalition rhetoric time and time again when cuts are discussed – “We are clearing up the mess left by the last lot“. These figures suggest that that line is still resonating.

My strong view is that EdM needs to replace Ed Balls as Shadow Chancellor with someone less close, in the public mind, to Gordon Brown. It will be harder to pin things on Labour is Balls is not the main economic spokesman.

Mike Smithson

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