Three-quarters of voters think the government has spent too much time on Brexit

74 per cent think ministers have 'forgotten' about important domestic issues, poll finds

Almost three-quarters of voters think the government has spent too much time on Brexit at the expense of addressing other important issues, a new poll had found.

The BMG survey for The Independent found that 74 per cent of voters thought ministers had “forgotten” about important domestic issues and focused too much attention on negotiating Britain’s EU withdrawal.

36 per cent said they strongly agreed with the suggestion, while a further 38 per cent somewhat agreed.

Brexit has dominated the parliamentary agenda in recent months, with new legislation having all but dried up as ministers focus their efforts on trying to secure parliament’s support for an exit deal.

On several occasions the House of Commons has risen hours earlier than scheduled because there was nothing for MPs to debate.

Frustration at the lack of focus on other policy areas is much higher among older voters, with 81 per cent of 55- to 64-year-olds and 79 per cent of over-65s saying ministers have been too distracted by Brexit.

That could reflect voters’ concerns about the growing crisis in areas such as social care. The government’s social care plan had been promised before April but has yet to be published. It has now been delayed five times in just over two years.

Anger at the government’s focus on Brexit is consistent across supporters of all the main political parties. While 81 per cent of Labour supporters and 82 per cent of Liberal Democrats think ministers have been too pre-occupied by Britain’s exit from the EU, so too do 70 per cent of Conservative supporters. Even a majority of Ukip supporters (70 per cent) and Brexit Party (62 per cent) supporters agree.

The belief also unites people across the Brexit divide, with 82 per cent of Remain voters and 73 per cent of Leave voters agreeing with the statement: “The government has spent too much time focusing on Brexit and has forgotten about important domestic issues.”

The finding will likely be seized on by allies of Theresa May as evidence that voters want politicians to get on with delivering Brexit.

The prime minister will make a fresh bid to secure a breakthrough this week when cross-party talks with Labour come to a head. The government is also expected to seek new talks with the EU to determine whether compromises discussed during talks with Jeremy Corbyn’s party be acceptable to leaders in Brussels.

But with senior figures in both parties playing down the prospect of an agreement, the deadlock looks set to continue.

A Downing Street spokesperson said: “This government has taken action to ensure we build an economy that works for everyone. This has included investing record amounts in public services, including £2.8bn more for the NHS and £1.3bn more for schools. We have doubled free childcare, frozen fuel duty, cut stamp duty for 95 per cent of first-time buyers and increased the National Living Wage and tax-free Personal Allowance.

“We are delivering on issues people care most about. We have introduced world-leading legislation to cut the gender pay gap, launched the government’s first ever 25 year environment action plan, the first ever Race Disparity audit and are putting a legal duty of care on internet companies to keep people safe.”

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Supporters of a second Brexit referendum said the finding highlighted the need to give the public another vote. 

Labour MP Stephen Doughty said: “Thousands of hours of political energy that could have been spent on challenges like climate change – and billions of pounds of taxpayers money that could have been spent on schools, hospitals and police – are being shamefully wasted by this Brexit chaos.

“We cannot keep going round and round and round in circles. We must break the Brexit deadlock by giving the people the final say in a confirmatory vote on any deal, and move on so we can focus on all the other issues that matter.”