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Blair Approval Drops Significantly in Britain
(Angus Reid Global Scan) - Few Britons are content with their prime minister, according to a poll by MORI. 60 per cent of respondents are dissatisfied with Tony Blair's performance, up nine points since August.
In May, British voters renewed the House of Commons. The governing Labour party secured 356 seats, followed by the Conservatives with 197 and the Liberal Democrats with 62. Blair has served as Britain's prime minister since 1997. Only 29 per cent of respondents are satisfied with the government's performance, down seven points since August.
On Oct. 12, the government presented its anti-terrorism legislation, which typifies condoning or glorifying terrorism as a criminal offence and includes a provision to hold suspects for up to 90 days without charge.
Blair justified the proposed law in the House of Commons, saying, "The people who are in charge of fighting terrorism in this country, and in particular the senior police officer who is in charge of it, says—for reasons that I have to say personally I find absolutely compelling—that it is necessary to have this power in order to protect the public."
Under the legislation, any person who preaches hatred or violence could be deported, and people with links to terrorists would be automatically banned from seeking asylum. In order to become law, the bill must be passed in the House of Commons and ratified by the House of Lords.
Polling Data
Are you satisfied or dissatisfied with the way Tony Blair is doing its job?
Sept. 2005 | Aug. 2005 | Jul. 2005 | |
Satisfied | 31% | 39% | 44% |
Dissatisfied | 60% | 51% | 47% |
Are you satisfied or dissatisfied with the way the government is doing his job?
Sept. 2005 | Aug. 2005 | Jul. 2005 | |
Satisfied | 29% | 36% | 37% |
Dissatisfied | 61% | 54% | 51% |
Source: MORI
Methodology: Face-to-face interviews to 1,930 British adults, conducted from Sept. 22 to Sept. 26, 2005. No margin of error was provided.