Britain's governing Labour Party fell further behind the opposition Conservatives in a poll on Thursday, increasing pressure on Prime Minister Gordon Brown before a party conference at which he will fight for his job.
Labour is consistently near 30-year lows in polls and its lack of popularity has been compounded by the global economic crisis, in which Britain's largest savings group, HBOS, was taken over by Lloyds TSB in a $20 billion deal on Wednesday. Unemployment in Britain rose last month by the biggest amount in 16 years, figures this week showed. Rising food and energy costs and slumping house prices have also stoked discontent with Labour's 11 years in office.
Brown's declining fortunes, 15 months since he replaced Tony Blair without a leadership contest, have led to calls from members of his party to quit. Dissenters want a different leader to take them into the next election, due by mid-2010. Brown's official spokesman brushed off the opinion poll, saying the prime minister was not focusing on such issues.
"The prime minister is solely preoccupied with the big issues facing the country at the moment, not least the situation we have seen in financial markets in recent days," he said. Britain's economy ground to a halt in the second quarter and analysts warn it may soon go into recession. With inflation running at 4.7 percent thanks to soaring food and fuel prices, the central bank has been reluctant to cut interest rates.
Jacqui Smith, the home secretary or interior minister, rallied behind Brown and backed his replacement as finance minister, Alistair Darling, who has led attempts to rein in Britain's financial and banking turmoil. Asked if Brown should call a leadership contest and take on the party's dissenters, Smith told GMTV: "No."
However, Work and Pensions Secretary James Purnell, regarded as a potential leadership contender, refused to condemn the rebels in an interview published on Thursday. But he said he did not agree with what they had done. Despite public support from some cabinet ministers, the poll is likely to fuel the revolt by Labour rebels before the party's annual decision-making conference starting on Saturday.