British prime minister Gordon Brown's popularity has plummeted after his government's reputation for competence was dealt a double blow, the latest opinion poll showed today.
The ICM poll in the Guardian newspaper, echoing earlier soundings, capped a bruising week for Brown whose administration came under fire over the Northern Rock banking debacle and the computer loss of almost half the population's personal details.
The "Brown bounce" - he had contemplated calling a snap election after his popularity soared in September 0 has vanished.
The poll showed just 31 per cent backed Mr Brown, down four percentage points from last month. It was the lowest ICM rating since he took over from Tony Blair in June after a decade waiting in the wings as finance minister.
The big winners in the poll were the centrist Liberal Democrats, the country's third biggest party, whose support rose three percentage points to 23 percent. The party is engaged in a contest to pick a new leader.
The Conservatives, the main opposition party, enjoyed the support of 37 perc ent but, worryingly for its leader David Cameron, their support was down three percentage points.
The ICM poll mirrored the sombre soundings delivered by a Populus poll on Friday in the Timesnewspaper.
It showed the share of voters who trust him and his finance minister, Alistair Darling, to handle the economy has fallen to just 28 per cent since September.