A Liberal Democrat-Labour government led by Sir Ed Davey has been deemed the least unpopular coalition among British voters, according to a new YouGov survey.
The poll found that of the potential combinations given, none hold support from the majority of the public and most would prefer to have a single-party government.
But a Liberal Democrat-Labour coalition, led by Sir Ed, was opposed the least – with 36 per cent of Britons saying they would support such a result and 45 per cent saying they would oppose it.
Meanwhile, a Liberal Democrat-Labour coalition led by Sir Keir Starmer was supported by 31 per cent of those surveyed, and opposed by 51 per cent.
At the Liberal Democrat conference in September last year, Ed Davey declined to say whether he would join a coalition with Labour after the next election if it meant preventing a Reform UK government.
Asked repeatedly by the BBC whether he would consider entering into a coalition with Sir Keir’s party, the Lib Dem leader did not give a clear answer, and said he believes there is a moral duty to keep Nigel Farage’s party out of government.
A Labour-Green coalition with Starmer as PM was the second most popular combination, garnering the support of 33 per cent, while 51 per cent also said they opposed it.
A coalition between the Conservatives and Reform UK would have the support of 29 per cent if Nigel Farage was prime minister and 25 per cent if Badenoch was, though either arrangement would be opposed by 56 per cent.
If Reform UK end up as the largest party in a hung parliament, their current voters are largely split between the 48 per cent who would want them to form a coalition with the Conservatives and the 43 per cent who would prefer they attempt to form a government without a majority.
Coalitions between Labour and right-wing parties are the least popular, with just one in six Britons supportive of a coalition between Labour and the Conservatives, regardless of who was prime minister.
Seventeen per cent said they would support a Reform-Labour coalition with Nigel Farage as prime minister, while only 6 per cent said they would “somewhat support” this coalition with Starmer in charge – the lowest of all combinations.
However, the poll shows the public would still prefer to have a single-party government over a coalition overall.
Half of Britons said they’d rather one party govern by itself, compared to just over a quarter who would rather two or more parties govern together in coalition.
Support for single-party government is strongest among those currently intending to vote Reform UK at 76 per cent or Conservative at 69 per cent. Current Labour supporters also favour one-party government by 53 per cent to 29 per cent.
Lib Dems are split on the question 40 per cent to 43 per cent, while those intending to vote Green favour coalitions over single-party government by 46 per cent to 35 per cent.
Greens could join pact with Labour – but not while Starmer’s in charge, Polanski says
Musk's Grok chatbot restricts image generation after global backlash to sexualized deepfakes
X could be banned in UK amid sexualised AI images concerns
UK faces ‘£28bn defence funding shortfall’, top military chief warns Starmer
Irish media minister deactivates X account following Grok controversy
Have your say: How ready is the UK to send troops to Ukraine?
