What Lib Dem members think of the Coalition & its record

by Stephen Tall on July 1, 2012

Lib Dem Voice has polled our members-only forum to discover what Lib Dem members think of various political issues, the Coalition, and the performance of key party figures. Some 560 party members responded, and we’re publishing the full results.

80% of Lib Dem members support the Coalition

Do you support or oppose the Lib Dems being in the Coalition Government with the Conservatives? (Comparison with March 2012′s figures)

    80% (-1%) – Support
    16% (+2%) – Oppose
    4% (n/c) – Don’t know / No opinion

Support for the Coalition remains high, at 80%, in spite of all the difficulties it’s endured in the past months, from NHS reforms to the budget to the ‘double dip’ recession. The net support rating, at +64%, is the lowest we’ve yet recorded, but not by much: it was +68% in December. Support for the principle of the Coalition has been above 80% ever since we started asking this question in our surveys in July 2010.

Approval of Coalition Government’s record dips to +32%

LDV asked: Do you approve or disapprove of the Coalition Government’s record to date? (comparison with March 2012′s figures)

    59% (-3%) – Approve
    31% (+1%) – Disapprove
    10% (+2%) – Don’t know / No opinion

However, the net approval for the Coalition’s record to date has taken a further hit, down from +32% in March to +28% now: that’s the lowest figure we’ve yet recorded in these surveys. As recently as February, net approval stood at a far healthier +40%.

  • Over 1,200 Lib Dem paid-up party members are registered with LibDemVoice.org. Some 560 responded to the latest survey, which was conducted between 28th May and 1st June.
  • Please note: we make no claims that the survey is fully representative of the Lib Dem membership as a whole. However, LibDemVoice.org’s surveys are the largest independent samples of the views of Lib Dem members across the country, and have in the past accurately predicted the winners of the contest for Party President, and the result of the conference decision to approve the Coalition agreement.
  • The full archive of our members’ surveys can be viewed at www.libdemvoice.org/category/ldv-members-poll

    • * Stephen Tall is Co-Editor of Liberal Democrat Voice, and also writes at his own site, The Collected Stephen Tall.