Last month, 40 per cent of panel respondents believed that the Prime Minister should quit now, 39 per cent before the next election – and 19 per cent refused both options. These last presumably think that she should lead the party into the next contest in 2022 or before. This month, those totals are 35 per cent, 45 per cent and 18 per cent.
One way of dicing the figures is to calculate that 79 per cent said last month that she should quit either now or later in the Parliament, and then note that this month that this total is 80 per cent. However, has been a slight shift about the timing among those who think she should resign (from now to later).
But whichever way you cut them, these findings are cold comfort for Theresa May’s standing as the annual conference looms in Birmingham next week. A single fact still stands about. The proportion of respondents believing that the Prime Minister should go at some point before the next election hasn’t dropped below half since we first asked the question in the wake of last year’s election.