Yahoo News Rishi Sunak wins over 77pc of Telegraph readers
Rishi Sunak has said the Government must “stay the course” after the Conservative Party suffered heavy losses in the local elections on May 4.
The vote saw approximately 1,000 Tory councillors lose their seats, while Labour and Liberal Democrats both made gains.
Nevertheless, an exclusive poll by The Telegraph has revealed that the Prime Minister is “winning over” 77 per cent of over 30,000 of our readers, who now have confidence in his premiership.
Mr Sunak shared his five pledges in January, which included cutting NHS waiting lists and getting a handle on illegal immigration.
Since then, the Prime Minster has passed the Immigration Bill through the Commons and it is now on its second reading in the Lords.
Mr Sunak has also introduced plans to take the pressure off GPs by encouraging pharmacists to treat more common ailments and enabling patients to get prescriptions directly from pharmacies without a GP appointment.
A proportion of readers believe the Prime Minister has been a reliable figure since taking over from Liz Truss last October, with many praising his proactive approach.
Gary B, for example, stated that “Rishi Sunak’s calm competence has won me over”, and described the Prime Minister as “a huge relief after the ordeal of Theresa May and Boris Johnson”. He added that “out of all of the past prime ministers, Margaret Thatcher would have picked Mr Sunak”.
Similarly, Derek Miller said that “Rishi Sunak is capable and credible”, but argued that “much damage has been done” prior to his leadership and, in turn, “it may be too late”.
Also arguing in favour of the Prime Minister, Gilbert Hall said that he was “increasingly impressed by Sunak”, and that he “handily disposed of Boris Johnson, Liz Truss and Nicola Sturgeon”.
After Rishi Sunak blocked Nicola Sturgeon’s controversial gender reforms, Lisa Arcari praised the move, saying: “Well thank goodness for Rishi Sunak and Section 35. Well done. Finally, backbone prevails.”
Similarly, James Fellows stated: “Good to see Sunak standing up to Sturgeon. About time someone did.”
On the occasion of King Charles’s Coronation, Mr Sunak gained support following his bible reading, which Archie Crompton found “inspirational and through that he showed the way to respect his own heritage and to be British”.
“Mr Sunak shows how reaching out and being inclusive is a two-way street,” Mr Crompton added.
Elsewhere, Bruce Simkin highlighted the Prime Minister’s past efforts during the Covid lockdown: “Rishi Sunak was widely known for arguing during Covid for the Government to consider the impacts of restrictions to the economy.”
And Carl Martin stated that he has “always been a Rishi Sunak supporter”. “More people are now being won over by Sunak’s capacity to get on with the job, avoid controversy and provide stability,” he said.
Nevertheless, Mr Martin also shared criticism of Mr Sunak: “On the big issues, such as immigration, he is still short of where we need to be. Time is regrettably not on his side so he needs to get a move on.”
‘No one trusts Rishi Sunak to deliver’
This sentiment was shared by 23 per cent of Telegraph readers, who Mr Sunak has failed to win over.
For instance, on the Prime Minister’s vision that every young person should learn some form of maths until the age of 18, Rober Bard said: “This relentless media chat about Sunak and maths is a distraction from much more important matters.”
Helen McG argued that “no one trusts Mr Sunak to deliver” and described the Prime Minister’s pledges as “a whole bunch of empty promises that the Tories just don’t have the will or gumption to deliver”.
And after the local elections landed the Tories with a bloody nose, Timothy Morgan questioned Rishi Sunak’s position as Prime Minister “without any form of election”, arguing it “leaves a legacy of distrust”.
“The results are a direct criticism of the present government and the policies of Sunak and Hunt. Conservative voters could only show their disapproval by staying at home during the local elections or voting for a real outsider.”
