Australian PM loses popular support: Poll

Canberra : Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison has lost ground as the nation’s preferred leader, a poll has revealed.

The latest Newspoll, which was published on Sunday night, revealed that the leader of the opposition Labor Party, Anthony Albanese, has closed the gap to Morrison, reports Xinhua news agency.

It found that 46 per cent of respondents identified Morrison as their preferred Prime Minister compared to 38 per cent for Albanese.

It is the tightest gap between the two since March 2020 and marks a major turnaround from February when Morrison led 61-26.

The poll of 1,524 voters was taken in the wake of Morrison’s appearance at the COP26 climate summit in Glasgow where he committed to a 2050 net zero emissions target.

Albanese has been a fierce critic of Morrison’s signature climate policy, describing it as a “scam” that lacks detail.

The Labor leader promised that he would release his own climate policy before the end of 2021.

According to Newspoll, Labor leads Morrison’s coalition 53-47 on a two-party preferred basis, a slight swing in the government’s favor from 54-46 at the start of October.

Thirty-eight per cent of respondents said they intend to vote Labor as their first preference at the next general election, which is due to be held by May 2022, compared to 37 per cent for the coalition.