Canberra, (Samajweekly) Support for the Australian government has increased amid the coronavirus pandemic, according to a new poll published on Monday.
The latest opinion poll from Newspoll revealed that the governing Coalition now leads the Opposition Labor Party 53-47 on a two-party preferred basis, up from 51-49 in June, reports Xinhua news agency.
It represents the government’s biggest lead over Labor since July 2019 and marks a 10-point swing towards the Coalition since it trailed the Opposition 48-52 in the wake of the summer bushfire crisis.
Prime Minister Scott Morrison’s approval rating remains high as he prepares to accelerate Australia’s economic recovery from the coronavirus crisis with a major economic statement slated for Thursday.
Morrison’s approval rating was unchanged at 68 per cent.
The proportion of voters dissatisfied with his performance remained at 27 per cent, resulting in a net satisfaction rating of positive 41 per cent — a 63-point turnaround from negative 22 in February.
In comparison, Labor leader Anthony Albanese’s satisfaction rating fell to 41 per cent while his disapproval was unchanged at 40 per cent.
Almost 60 per cent of voters chose Morrison as their preferred Prime Minister, more than twice as many as the 26 per cent who chose Albanese.
Fifteen per cent of respondents were undecided.
This marked another major turnaround for Morrison who trailed Albanese as the preferred Prime Minister 38-43 in February.
The poll was conducted between July 15-18 and surveyed 1,850 voters across capital cities and regional areas.
