Nightmare for Keir Starmer as Labour struggles in polls and Boris enjoys ‘vaccine bounce’

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The survey revealed just 16 percent thought the Labour leader would have done a better job in leading Britain through the coronavirus pandemic. The results from the poll, conducted by Redfield and Wilton Strategies for MailOnline, came after a separate survey suggested that Mr Johnson’s Tories were benefiting from a “vaccine bounce” in popularity.

MPs complain that he has ‘no politics’ and that Labour has no clear identity beyond bland reassurance

New Statesman

A poll for ITV’s Peston programme put the Conservatives on 43 percent, up four points on the same time two months ago.

An Opinium poll for the Observer last weekend put the Tories on 41 percent, up four percentage points from two weeks ago, and Labour down three points on 38 percent.

The latest polling figures will be seen as a serious setback for Sir Keir and are bound to raise questions about why the party’s progress appears to have stalled so badly under his leadership.

The New Statesman magazine warned: “MPs complain that he has ‘no politics’ and that Starmer’s Labour has no clear identity beyond bland reassurance.”

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Party officials were hoping to see a surge in the polls with the country in the grip of a third coronavirus lockdown, the Covid-19 death toll passing the 100,000 mark and early signs of travel and trade disruption because of Mr Johnson’s Brexit deal.

But Mr Johnson and the Conservatives appear to be on the up again thanks mainly to Britain’s vaccine success story which began with a highly-effective drug being developed in record time by a team of scientists and researchers at Oxford University.

The vaccine was swiftly approved by UK medicines regulators and then deftly delivered in a remarkable mass vaccination programme which has so far seen one of five adults receive jabs from an army of doctors, nurses, pharmacists and volunteers in special centres set up across the country in a variety of venues from football stadiums to local chemist shops.

Health Secretary Matt Hancock said Britain remained on track to complete the vaccination of the top four priority groups by February 15.

It comes as Government data up to February 3 showed that of the 10,992,444 jabs given in the UK so far, 10,490,487 were first doses – a rise of 469,016 on the previous day’s figures.

Some 501,957 were second doses, meaning just over half-a-million people were now fully vaccinated.

Mr Hancock said: “We are on track to deliver the commitment we have made of offering the jab to all of the top four priority groups by February 15.

“I’m just so proud of the team who are delivering this, it’s going really, really well.

“You saw yesterday 10 million jabs done. Today we passed the threshold of one in five of the population who have been jabbed already.”

Earlier, vaccines minister Nadhim Zahawi said a target would be set for reaching all those aged 50 to 70, as well as those with underlying conditions which put them at higher risk of serious disease, once the most vulnerable had been offered a jab by mid-February, although he declined to set a date.

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Based on the latest Government figures, an average of 409,956 first doses of vaccine would be needed each day in order to meet the Government’s target of 15 million first doses by February 15.

So far in England, a total of 9,508,006 Covid-19 vaccinations had taken place between December 8 and February 3, according to provisional NHS England data, including first and second doses.

A further 915 people had died within 28 days of testing positive for Covid-19 as of Thursday, according to Government figures, bringing the UK total to 110,250.

Additionally, a further 20,634 lab-confirmed cases of coronavirus were recorded, with the UK total standing at 3,892,459.

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