Tory Voters Say The "Broken" Party Has Turned The UK Into A "Sinking Ship"

A broad majority of voters have described the Tory party as broken, out of touch, and lacking in credibility, in a comprehensive new study that seems to foreshadow the reckoning that likely awaits Prime Minister Rishi Sunak at the next general election.

A major Mood of the Nation survey by Think Insight & Strategy, the findings of which have been shared exclusively with PoliticsHome, interviewed over 2,000 voters of all political persuasions nationwide between 22-24 March — around a fortnight on from the Spring Budget, and with the 2 May local elections on the horizon.

When asked whether they believed the UK has "lost its way", exactly three quarters of respondents (75 per cent) said it had, while just eight per cent of people disagreed with the statement. That included 71 per cent of 2019 Tory voters and 80 per cent of those who supported Labour.

It found that over half of people (57 per cent) felt worse off now than they were five years ago, compared with 36 per cent who said they felt better off, while more people disagreed than agreed with the statement "I feel proud of the UK" (38 per cent to 30 per cent). Forty six per cent of 2019 Tory voters said they were proud of the country, while 25 per cent disagreed. Nearly half of people who voted Labour in 2019 (48 per cent) said disagreed that they are proud of the UK, while 23 per cent agreed.

To accompany its nationwide survey, Think Insight & Strategy conducted two focus groups, comprised specifically of 2019 Tory voters based in the towns of Basingstoke and Bolton, which didn't offer much hope for the government either. PoliticsHome observed both focus groups, which took place online on 19 March.

When participants were asked to describe how they feel about the country