New polling suggests Labour’s attack ads – which insinuated Rishi Sunak personally wills more lenient sentences for child sex offenders – have backfired for Sir Keir Starmer.
The party’s switch to hyper-aggressive and personalised online campaigning saw a smiling prime minister depicted next to the words: “Do you think adults convicted of sexually assaulting children should go to prison? Rishi Sunak doesn’t.”
The ‘attack ad’ has caused more voters to think negatively of Starmer’s party than a Conservative poster that accused the Labour leader of being soft on crime, according to an Opinium poll for the Observer.
Labour’s advert about Sunak made 17 per cent of those polled feel less favourable about the Conservatives, but also 12 per cent feel less favourable to Labour.
Conversely, the Conservative ad about Starmer made 9 per cent feel less favourable about Labour but just 2 per cent less positive about the Conservatives.
This week, Starmer and shadow health secretary Wes Streeting will highlight figures showing a postcode lottery for GP appointments, with as many as three in four people unable to see the doctor of their choice, though it is not clear if they will be backed by personalised attack ads.
In some parts of England, they will say, data shows people have only a 50/50 chance of getting a face-to-face appointment, while up to one in nine have to wait a month to see a GP.
Adam Drummond of Opinium said the attack ad row was less significant than the broader message that the Tories were failing to make real headway in terms of being trusted across the range of policies. In that sense, Starmer can be encouraged, despite an uncomfortable Easter.
“Labour leads on all of the most important issues, including the economy,” he said. “For every bit of progress Rishi Sunak makes, it seems to be undone a week or two later.”
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