Trust barometer | Muscat leads by 11 points as Busuttil gains trust boost

MaltaToday's latest survey shows that Labour leads by 4 points over the PN when it comes to voting intentions, with Muscat enjoying a strong but reduced 11-point trust lead over Busuttil 

Joseph Muscat enjoys an 11-point lead over Simon Busuttil, the narrowest trust gap since June 2013
Joseph Muscat enjoys an 11-point lead over Simon Busuttil, the narrowest trust gap since June 2013

Prime Minister Joseph Muscat enjoys a strong 11-point lead over Opposition leader Simon Busuttil in MaltaToday’s latest survey.

Muscat saw his trust lead increase by 1 point over the last survey in June 2015, while Busuttil increase his trust rating by a convincing 3 points.

Significantly, Labour leads by 4 points over the PN when it comes to voting intentions, down from a five-point lead in June 2015 and an eight-point lead in March 2015.

Muscat emerges as clearly more popular than his party, being trusted by 40% of voters. That’s 8 points more than the percentage of voters who are sure of voting Labour again in a forthcoming election. 

On the other hand Busuttil is just 1 point more popular than his own party.

The survey comes after the summer recess, which was dominated by allegations of sleaze and ongoing investigations in the Lands Department and Identity Malta, traffic problems and controversy on environmental issues, albeit against a backdrop of economic growth.

The survey indicates considerable movement among voters of both parties, with 6% of PN voters in 2013 now opting for the PL and 9% of PL voters who are now choosing the PN. 

Importantly, MaltaToday’s survey registers the narrowest trust gap ever between the two leaders since June 2013. With Muscat gaining 1 point and Busuttil three, the trust gap falls to 10.7 points. Their gains correspond to a decrease in undecided respondents.

Read the full survey results in today’s edition of MaltaToday