Essential
poll finds Scott Morrison’s approval at lowest level in a year and
approval of Coalition management of pandemic down eight points in a
month.
Just over half of respondents believe they are being vaccinated more slowly than they would like.
Last modified on Tue 13 Apr 2021 03.31 AEST
Voter approval of the Morrison government’s handling of the pandemic has dropped eight points in a month, and more than half of voters in the Guardian Essential poll sample think the Coalition needs to step up and take more responsibility for ensuring Australians are vaccinated against Covid-19 as quickly as possible.
The latest survey of 1,368 voters suggests the government is in a vulnerable political position as it attempts to recalibrate the vaccination program, with just over half of respondents believing they are being vaccinated more slowly than they would like, and nearly a third (27%) of the sample feeling vaccinations are progressing a lot more slowly than they would like.
The latest survey indicates Morrison’s approval rating has hit its lowest level in 12 months, dropping to 54% in this fortnight’s survey from 65% in February.
The prime minister is also continuing to lose support among women after a string of abuse and harassment scandals have rocked the Australian parliament, with disapproval of Morrison among women increasing to 42% in the latest survey from 28% in February.
While the Guardian Essential poll taken a fortnight ago indicated Morrison had taken a hit with women while retaining the support of men, the accumulated evidence of the last four surveys suggests disapproval of the prime minister among male voters has also increased incrementally, from 28% in February to 32% in the latest poll.
As well as the diminution in personal approval, Morrison has also slipped on the better prime minister ranking. Just under half (47%) of respondents nominate him as their preferred candidate, down from 52% last month. This is Morrison’s worst outing on this metric for 12 months.
Support for Anthony Albanese as an alternative has increased from 26% last month to 28% in the latest survey, but a quarter of the sample can’t make up their minds about which of the two would be the better prime minister.
On the gender split, support for Morrison as preferred prime minister has dropped among women from 53% in March to 42% in April. Albanese’s approval rating has gone from 41% last month to 39% this month, and 27% of the sample still don’t know whether they approve or disapprove of his performance.
With controversy surrounding the government’s unsteady implementation of the vaccination rollout, approval of the Coalition’s management of the pandemic has dropped from 70% to 62%. Approval has also dropped in all of the states over the past month.
Voters were asked to identify which tier of government or what factors were most responsible for problems with the vaccination rollout from a list including Canberra, the state governments, international supply chain problems, and unavoidable production delays.
Canberra topped that list, with 42% of the sample identifying the Morrison government. Problems with supply chains and production were next (24% and 18%). Only 7% of the sample though the states were responsible.
Voters most likely to identify Morrison as the culprit were the cohort between 35 and 54, and Labor voters. Coalition voters were more forgiving, nominating international supply chains as most responsible for the delays.
People aged over 55 are more likely than younger voters to think the vaccine rollout is progressing more slowly than they would like (73% compared to 43% of voters aged between 35-54 and 39% of voters aged from 18-34).
Again, Labor voters are more likely to feel the rollout is progressing more slowly than they would like (60% compared to 52% of Coalition voters, 49% of Greens voters and 42% of independent and minor party voters).
Just under half the sample (48%) agreed with the statement: “The slower than expected rollout indicates that the federal government is not doing as good a job as they claimed” – with 56% agreeing with the statement: “The federal government needs to step up and take more responsibility for ensuring Australians are vaccinated against Covid-19 as quickly as possible”.
But voters are also attuned to the international dynamics, with 47% agreeing with the statement: “Delays in the distribution of Covid-19 vaccines are due to circumstances outside the federal government’s control, and there’s nothing more they could have done about it.”
Voters were also asked in the latest survey whether or not they believe Labor would have done a competent job of managing the pandemic. Just under half the sample (44%) said yes, while 37% were not confident, and 18% were unsure.
The latest survey results suggest voters are also anxious about the end of the enhanced income support rolled out during the pandemic, with 58% of the sample saying they are worried about how these changes will affect the economy.
A majority of the sample believes that companies that have made windfall gains from the fiscal stimulus should repay the government (66%). But there is also concern about a looming rout in so-called “zombie” businesses propped up by wage subsidies. Over half the sample (65%) believes there are a lot of businesses that have been surviving only because of jobkeeper and are unlikely to ever return.
While the survey demonstrates voters are concerned about the high costs of the stimulus, and about the potential for people to not seek work if benefits were too high, just under half the sample thinks the jobkeeper and jobseeker programs should have been extended at least until the Covid-19 vaccination program was fully rolled out (48%).
More than half the sample thinks that ending the coronavirus supplement to the jobseeker benefit will create more poverty in the community. There is also frustration about a lack of opportunity in the labour market, with 55% of respondents agreeing with the statement: “The real problem the government should be addressing isn’t the cost of jobkeeper and jobseeker but the fact that there aren’t enough decent jobs available.”
There is concern across the voting cohorts about the economic impact of withdrawing income support, although progressive voters are more perturbed than the Coalition’s rusted-on’s. Labor and Greens voters are the most likely to agree they are worried about how the loss of income support will affect the economy (67% and 62% respectively) compared to 54% of Coalition voters.
In a Facebook live session on Monday night aimed at reassuring voters that the vaccination rollout had not been botched, Morrison flagged more stimulatory measures in the budget on 11 May “that build on the work that was done by jobkeeper and jobseeker to ensure the Australian economy keeps leading the world out of the recession that was caused by Covid-19”.
Morrison late on Sunday admitted that all Australians may not be vaccinated by year’s end. The prime minister said in a statement uploaded to Facebook there would be no new timetable to replace the previous October target.
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