UK Leader Approval Tracker

Source: YouGov / Ipsos monthly tracker. Badenoch data starts Nov 2024. All figures are net approval (Approve % minus Disapprove %).

Tracker Analysis

Starmer: one-way traffic downward

Of all the leaders tracked since GE2024, Starmer shows the most consistent downward trajectory. His only month without a fall was November 2025, when ratings held steady at -33 before resuming their decline. The cumulative drop of 25 points since July 2024 is an unusually sustained collapse for a new Prime Minister.

The Farage floor

Farage's approval line is the most stable of any leader, sitting in a narrow band between -18 and -15 for the entire tracking period. This reflects the deeply entrenched, polarised view the public holds of him: his supporters are consistent and passionate; his opponents are equally firm. His national -15% conceals a +78% net approval among Reform voters and deeply negative ratings among Labour and Green voters.

Davey: steady but not spectacular

Ed Davey's trajectory shows modest improvement from -8 in July 2024 to -6 in May 2026. His low disapproval rate (38%) keeps him well clear of Badenoch and Farage. As the leader of the only major party to gain substantially at GE2024, he retains credibility without the toxicity of being in government.

See also: leaders comparison — leader approval — voting intention

Keir Starmer's journey from a net approval of −10% in July 2024 to −44% by May 2026 represents one of the most dramatic declines in prime ministerial approval in the polling era. Several factors are at work simultaneously. First, the government's decision to cut winter fuel payments to pensioners in autumn 2024 generated a firestorm of public criticism and accelerated approval falls among older voters who had backed Labour in 2024. Second, the scale of the welfare reform proposals, which would reduce disability benefit payments, created a major backbench revolt and significant negative media coverage. Third, NHS waiting lists remain stubbornly high, undermining Labour's key electoral promise on health. Fourth, on the economy, real wage growth has been slower than expected, reducing the government's ability to point to tangible improvements in living standards.

By contrast, Ed Davey's modest improvement from −8% to −6% reflects the benefit of being a smaller opposition party in a period of intense disillusionment with both main parties. The Liberal Democrats' net approval benefits from being seen as competent but non-threatening — voters who would never vote Lib Dem still tend not to hold strong negative views of them. Nigel Farage's flat approval line at −15% illustrates the ceiling effect for Reform UK: his core supporters (+78% among Reform voters) are passionate but the majority of British voters have a firmly negative view that shows no sign of shifting. The voting intention data suggests Reform can win at 28% VI despite negative net approval because their voters are highly efficient geographically — but it would be far easier with better favourability. The 2029 General Election will test whether any leader can shift these entrenched approval patterns.

Video: Analysis of Keir Starmer's record-low approval ratings — the steepest decline recorded for a UK Prime Minister in the modern polling era.