SUPPORT FOR THE Government has fallen sharply in the wake of the Budget earlier this month, a new poll reveals.
The Sunday Times/Behaviour and Attitudes study shows that satisfaction with the coalition’s performance dropped a full ten points to 26 per cent, down from 36 per cent in October.
The governing parties also saw their ratings fall significantly. Support for Fine Gael dropped seven points to 30 per cent, while Labour’s decreased by four points to just 11 per cent.
It means Labour’s support is now less than half its level before February’s General Election, when the same poll put the party at 23 per cent.
The biggest winner in the new poll is Fianna Fáil, which saw its support climb five points to 20 per cent. Sinn Féin gained two points to 21 per cent, with independents and others also up two to 15 per cent.
The poll found that financial issues remain the biggest issue for voters. Sixty per cent of respondents said they were worried about not being able to pay household bills, with 43 per cent expressing fears over their mortgage payments.
Meanwhile almost four in ten people said they were worried about losing their jobs, and more than half – 55 per cent – said they feared somebody else in their household would be made redundant.
The poll was carried out over 921 Irish voters at all 43 constituencies nationwide between December 7 and December 12.
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