Opinium/Politico: 15th July 2026 polling
New polling from Opinium for Politico explores public attitudes towards the prospect of Andy Burnham appointing Ed Miliband as Chancellor of the Exchequer.
Just under half of UK adults (42%) think appointing Miliband would be a bad idea, compared with 23% who think it would be a good idea. Support is higher among Labour and Green voters, but falls to 20% among Conservative voters and 14% among Reform UK voters.
Among those who think the appointment would be a bad idea, the most commonly cited reasons are Miliband’s opposition to new oil and gas drilling in the North Sea (50%) and his record as Labour leader between 2010 and 2015 (49%). Concerns that he would increase taxes (47%), his support for green energy and net zero policies (44%), and the view that his politics are too left-wing (41%) are also frequently mentioned.
See the full data tables here.
Research methodology
Opinium conducted an online survey of 2,050 UK adults aged 18+ between 15th and 17th July 2026. Results were weighted to be nationally and politically representative of the UK adult population.