(Angus Reid Global Monitor) - Less than one-fifth of people in Britain think Gordon Brown is doing a good job, according to a poll by YouGov. 19 per cent of respondents say the prime minister is doing well as head of government, while 77 per cent believe he is doing badly.

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. 61 per cent of respondents think Cameron is doing a good job as opposition leader.

In December 2007, current parliamentarian Nick Clegg became the new leader of the Liberal Democrats, defeating environment spokesman Chris Huhne in a leadership ballot by just over 500 votes.

On Jul. 16, Brown blocked a proposal to eliminate the right of members of Parliament to claim expenses for house furniture and household goods. Instead, the House of Commons agreed to cap the claims at 10 per cent of the amount lawmakers receive for their annual second home allowance.

Shadow House leader and Conservative lawmaker Theresa May criticized the measure, saying, "The government is treating people like fools. (...) MPs should not be able to buy their TVs and furniture at the taxpayer’s expense. When will this Labour government get the message?"

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 think Gordon Brown is doing well or badly as prime minister?

Do you think David Cameron is doing well or badly as Conservative leader?

Source: YouGov
Methodology: Online interviews with 1,832 British voters, conducted on Jul. 10 and Jul. 11, 2008. No margin of error was provided.

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