An early poll of voters suggests failure to tackle NHS waiting lists was the main reason voters voted out the Conservatives, while an early poll revealed a series of Tory missteps.
Pollsters believe Rishi Sunak’s failure to resolve the NHS strikes could have proved fatal for the Conservatives.
A senior expert said the health service was “the story of the election” as fed-up voters decided enough was enough. A third of voters believe failing to tackle waiting lists was one of the biggest mistakes they made, according to an early poll.
The Conservatives were castigated for the state of the NHS, despite it being “narrowly overlooked” during the campaign, analysis suggests. Luke Tryl, director of More in Common, said: “The NHS is undoubtedly the story of this election. And I could have told you that from many focus groups… everyone had a story about a family member struggling on a waiting list.”
“The most powerful things in politics are those that people can personally identify with, and the NHS is there,” he added. This raises questions about whether Sunak could have prevented the attacks if he had addressed them.
Scroll down to see what voters say were Mr Sunak’s biggest failures.
Mr Tryl said Mr Sunak could have avoided some of the damage if he had listened to Boris Johnson’s former adviser Dominic Cummings. Mr Cummings said he had advised Mr Sunak to resolve the NHS pay dispute – which has seen thousands of doctors and staff repeatedly walk out – as a priority.
Mr Tryl said: “There was a lot of discussion about the NHS during the campaign but perhaps it was somewhat understated in the pre-match analysis as to its influence on the vote.
“When you ask what Rishi Sunak’s biggest mistake has been, the failure of the NHS comes first. You have to ask yourself if Sunak had followed Dominic Cummings’ advice and resolved the NHS strikes on day one, whether we would be in a slightly different situation or whether the scale of those defeats would have been minimised.”
Asked what Sunak’s three worst mistakes in government were, 33% singled out the lack of waiting lists as the top answer. Another 23% said it was the failure to stop Channel crossings, while the same number said it was his failure to tackle the cost of living crisis.
What was Rishi Sunak’s biggest mistake as Prime Minister?
More in Common asked attendees to name the former prime minister’s three biggest mistakes. They responded:
NHS waiting lists fail to reduce: 33%
Illegal Canal crossings not being reduced – 23%
There is no response to the cost of living crisis: 23%
Abandoning D-Day commemorations early: 18%
They took too long to deal with ministers who had acted badly – 13%
Commitment to the policy of sending some migrants to Rwanda – 13%
Suella Braverman Appointed as Secretary of the Interior – 12%
Delay in meeting some of our climate goals: 11%
Fines for breaking lockdown rules during Partygate: 10%
I don’t know – 10%
Economic growth is not achieved – 10%
Early call for elections: 9%
9% have been supporting Boris Johnson for too long
Conservative Party Management – 9%
Drastic measures against sickness and disability benefits – 8%
Playing a role in the ouster of Boris Johnson as Prime Minister – 7%
Introducing Eat Out to Help Out: 7%
Dismantling of the High Speed 2 – 7% extension
Increase in public spending during the Covid-19 pandemic: 6%
His response to party members who are betting on the elections: 5%
Reduction of social security contributions: 4%
Legislation to ban tobacco and disposable e-cigarettes – 3%
None of these – 3%
According to the poll, 18% of respondents believe that Bush’s biggest mistake was neglecting D-Day commemorations during the campaign, and more than one in ten (12%) believe that appointing Suella Braverman as Home Secretary was a mistake.
Asked why they thought the Conservatives had lost, 69% – including 48% of Conservative voters – thought it was because of their incompetence. Mr Tryl said: “The feeling is overwhelmingly that the Conservatives were not competent. There was a loss of trust, competence and effectiveness in this election, rather than a particular ideological wing of the Conservative Party.”
Of those who voted Labour, 55% said they were attracted by the NHS and health policies. Analysis of last week’s results showed the Conservatives were only ahead of Labour among people aged over 62.
