Is it too much to ask journalists to check the data?

Reports of an interview with the Deputy Leadership candidate, Harriet Harman, were published on the BBC web-site this morning in which she quoted from a privately commissioned YouGov poll that was carried out in November.

The findings, according to the article, “…show that the Harman/Brown dream ticket is the one with most appeal to “swing voters,” the poll suggests, with 15% of those surveyed saying Ms Harman would make them more likely to vote Labour, compared to 12% for nearest rival Hilary Benn. “I will be making that information available to colleagues, so that if for them the most important thing is getting a fourth term then I will be the best candidate”, she says.

That’s fine – except she missed out one important fact – an equal proportion, 15% – said they would be LESS LIKELY to vote Labour with Brown and Harman in the tops jobs. When the Brown-Benn option was put 12% said more likely and 12% less likely.

We last reported on this in November after an Independent story had not included the figures showing Harman in a less favourable light. The full YouGov data is here.

Mike Smithson