New polling has made it clear where British voters lay the blame for the recent riots that have engulfed the country – and it doesn’t make for pretty reading for Reform UK leader, Nigel Farage.
Pockets of violent uprisings across the country were sparked after misinformation was shared freely on X in the wake of the Southport attacks, with Farage among the high-profile accounts to raise questions about the suspect.
Polling by Savanta seen by HuffPost UK shows that 51 per cent of the public blame the Reform UK leader for the disorder, which led to hundreds of arrests and tough prison sentences for some of those involved.
Farage came just behind former English Defence League leader Tommy Robinson, who was blamed by 54 per cent of those polled.
Billionaire X owner Elon Musk came next on 44 per cent, with prime minister Keir Starmer being blamed by 40 per cent.
Labour’s handling of the UK riots
Separate polling conducted by Opinium found that the public are behind how Starmer and his government have tackled recent riots that broke out across the country – with 43 per cent approving of the way the government has handled the violent disorder.
In addition, 39 per cent say they approve of Starmer’s handling of the riots, vs 29 per cent who disapprove.
As sentences for those involved in the riots are handed out, UK voters think the Government has reacted proportionately to the situation (44 per cent), with over a quarter (26 per cent) saying they think they have underreacted.
Two in five (37 per cent) think the sentences being handed out have been about right, with a third (33 per cent) revealing they have not been harsh enough.
“Grim reading for Nigel Farage”
Chris Hopkins, Savanta’s political research director, said: “Contrary to online talking points, the country is broadly more likely to say Keir Starmer did well in managing the situation than not.
“Our research probably makes grimmer reading for Nigel Farage, who is only behind former EDL leader Tommy Robinson in being seen as ‘responsible’ for the violent protests.
“The public think that swift justice for violent protestors is the best way to stop them happening again – a course of action being followed by the government. The next thing they think needs to happen is public concerns about immigration being addressed.”
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