Public tells Osborne: We want a Plan B

More than seven in 10 people want the Government to U-turn on the economy and prioritise growth over spending cuts, a new poll revealed.

A ComRes poll found 72% of people agree the time has come for Chancellor George Osborne to change course on the economy just over two years after the coalition took office.

In the poll for The Independent, 17% disagreed the Government should change tack, while 11% said they did not know.

Some 64% of Conservative voters and 68% of Liberal Democrat voters at the last election recommend a U-turn. The figure rises to 86% of 2010 Labour voters.

On its regular state of the parties poll, ComRes found the Labour lead down slightly on last month to eight points, with Labour on 42% (down one), Conservatives on 34% (up one), the Liberal Democrats on 11% (no change) and others on 13% (no change).

The poll found a significant gender gap, with men splitting 40% to 39% in favour of the Conservatives, while among women the Tories are behind 29% to 45%.

ComRes interviewed 1,001 adults between May 25 and 29.