A new poll has given Labour a 33 point lead over the Tories as Kwasi Kwarteng and Liz Truss come under renewed pressure over their controversial economic plan.
The lead - thought to be the largest any political party has enjoyed since the late 1990s - comes as the Chancellor doubled down on his mini-budget, saying the Government “is sticking to the growth plan”.
The new YouGov poll, carried out on Wednesday and Thursday, put Labour on 54% with the Conservatives on 21%.
It follows market turmoil following last Friday’s mini-budget, which announced wide-ranging tax cuts funded by huge additional public borrowing.
On Thursday, US Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimondo joined those criticising the plan, as she said the package of measures “isn’t going to fight inflation” or promote long-term economic growth.
“Investors, business people want to see world leaders taking inflation very seriously, and it’s hard to see that out of this new government,” she said.
However Chancellor Kwarteng insisted the Government is “sticking to the growth plan” and that it is “going to help people with energy bills”.
In a message to Tory MPs, the Chancellor wrote: “I understand your concern. We are one team and need to remain focused. The only people who win if we divide is the Labour Party”.
Earlier, the Prime Minister also defended the fiscal plans but refused to guarantee whether people’s pensions are safe.
Speaking to BBC Radio Bristol during an interview round on Thursday, she was asked by presenter James Hanson if she could rule out further shocks to pensions after the Bank of England was forced to intervene on Wednesday.
Despite being pressed by the presenter, Ms Truss refused to rule out any further threats to pensions, instead saying: “Well, the Bank of England do that and they do a very good job of it.”
The Bank of England stepped in to stop a collapse in pension fund investments with a £65 billion bond-buying programme to address what it described as a potential “material risk to UK financial stability”.
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