LORD ASHCROFT POLL: ONLY 7% SUPPORT TAKING BACK ASYLUM SEEKERS FROM IRELAND WITHOUT RECIPROCAL DEAL WITH EU

LONDON, May 16, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Only 7% of British voters support taking back asylum seekers who have crossed the Irish border into Ireland without a deal for France to take back migrants who have crossed the Channel to the UK, according to a new poll from Lord Ashcroft. The poll also finds that less than half of 2019 Conservative voters are considering voting the party at the next election.

Findings from the research include:

• 50% of all voters, including 78% of 2019 Conservatives, agreed that the UK "should refuse to take back asylum seekers who have arrived in Ireland from the UK until France takes back asylum seekers who have arrived in Britain from the EU". Only 7% thought the UK should take back asylum seekers from Ireland even if France refuses to take back migrants from the UK. The findings follow news that 50 asylum seekers were returned to the UK by Irish police after they crossed the border in October and February.
  23% of respondents – including 40% of 2019 Labour voters – said asylum seekers should not be returned from either country but should be able to claim asylum in whichever country they choose.

• Less than half (41%) thought "concern for the plight of the Palestinians" was among the main motivations behind the university Gaza protests. Respondents thought other motivations included "joining in with other students regardless of the cause" (31%), "hostility towards Israel" (27%), "protesting against western governments" (22%) and "hostility towards Jews more generally" (16%).
• Following news that Britain is out of recession, 36% said the economy is starting to improve but only 17% thought the government deserved credit for this; 19% thought things were improving "but not because of anything the government has done". 54% thought things were not yet improving, including 49% who said this was "largely the government's fault".
• "Higher taxes for people like me" and new regulations that damage business were thought equally likely under Conservative and Labour governments. Spending and borrowing more than the country can afford was thought more likely under Labour, and unexpected changes that cause disruption and instability under the Conservatives.
• Less than half (49%) of 2019 Conservatives said they were seriously considering voting Conservative again at the next election. 31% said they were considering Reform UK, 20% Labour and 10% the Liberal Democrats.
• 7% of all respondents (including 9% of 2019 Tories) said they were satisfied with the Conservative government. 35% (including 76% of those leaning towards Reform UK) said they were dissatisfied but preferred it to a Labour government. 57% said they were dissatisfied and would rather have a Labour government.
• Keir Starmer led Rishi Sunak as best prime minister by 18 points, up from 15 points last month, with 48% saying "don't know". 37% said Starmer and Rachel Reeves would do a better job running the economy, compared to 22% naming Sunak and Jeremy Hunt.
• Asking how likely people were to vote for each party at the next election on a 100-point scale and including those whose highest score for one party was at least 50/100, we found implied vote shares of Labour 45%, Conservative 22%, Reform UK 11%, Greens 8%, Lib Dems 8%.

5,485 adults were interviewed online between 9 and 13 May 2024. Data have been weighted to be representative of all adults in Great Britain. Full details and data tables are available at LordAshcroftPolls.com

LORD ASHCROFT KCMG PC is an international businessman, philanthropist, pollster and author. He is a former Deputy Chairman of the Conservative Party and honorary Chairman of the International Democracy Union. His recent political books include Red Queen: The Unauthorised Biography of Angela Rayner; Going For Broke: The Rise of Rishi Sunak, and Red Knight: The Unauthorised Biography of Sir Keir Starmer.

LordAshcroftPolls.com//LordAshcroft.com  //  Twitter/Facebook: @LordAshcroft

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