(Angus Reid Global Monitor) - Most people in Britain think the governing Labour party should not remove Gordon Brown from office given the current economic circumstances, according to a poll by Communicate Research published in The Independent. 57 per cent of respondents agree that the timing is wrong to change the country’s head of government.

In addition, 30 per cent of respondents believe that foreign secretary David Miliband would be a better prime minister than Brown, while 47 per cent disagree.

On the other hand, 71 per cent of respondents say that if Brown is replaced as Labour leader, a general election should take place. Respondents are almost evenly divided on whether the opposition Conservative party is ready for government.

In June 2007, Brown officially became Labour leader and prime minister, replacing Tony Blair. Brown had worked as chancellor of the exchequer. Blair served as Britain’s prime minister since May 1997, winning majority mandates in the 1997, 2001 and 2005 elections to the House of Commons.

Since December 2005, David Cameron has been the leader of the Conservative party. In October 2007, Cameron challenged Brown to call a snap election, but the prime minister later announced he would not hold an early ballot.

On Sept. 29, shadow chancellor George Osborne told members of his Conservative party that Brown’s handling of the economy while he served as chancellor of the exchequer had allowed households to borrow too much money compared to the rest of Europe, adding, "We forgot that an economy built on debt is not an economy built to last. (...) The credit has dried up, the engines of the economy have stalled, the party is over. The boom is over and the bust has come."

The next election to the House of Commons must be held on or before Jun. 3, 2010. Sitting prime ministers can dissolve Parliament and call an early ballot at their discretion.

Polling Data

Do you agree or disagree with each of these statements?

Source: Communicate Research / The Independent
Methodology: Telephone interviews with 1,010 British adults, conducted on Sept. 17 and Sept. 18, 2008. Margin of error is 3 per cent.

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