David Cameron Is A 'Snake' Without Clear Views, YouGov Poll Finds

Voters' Venom

Voters have shown their venom towards the prime minister by comparing him to a snake who does not present a clear view of what he believes.

According to a YouGov survey published on Friday, 20% of those asked thought David Cameron most resembled a snake from a list of animals including a parrot, a sheep and a lizard.

The poll conducted for The Sun ahead of the Tory party conference in Birmingham showed that 14% thought he was most like a labrador while 8% thought he was like a poodle.

Animals that perhaps have more positive attributes that a leader would aspire to, such as a lion or a bulldog, came close to the bottom of the list, scoring in the single figures.

However Cameron will likely be relieved that only 4% saw him as a mouse.

In August Tory MP Tim Yeo grabbed headlines when he his leader needed to decide whether he was "man or mouse".

It is not clear whether the animal comparisons were spontaneous or if those asked were given a list to choose from.

While the snake comparison is a bit of fun, the figures likely to most worry the prime minister is the finding that around 55% of voters do not know what he stands for and that only 13% thought the government had performed well.

Also of concern will be that a massive 88% of people think he and his party represent the wealthy.

Ed Miliband has repeatedly targeted the perception that Cameron and his inner-circle are "posh boys" who do not understand the lives of the ordinary voter - a line of attack made easier following chief whip Andrew Mitchell's alleged class-based "pleb" attack on Downing Street police.

In his speech to the Labour Party conference on Wednesday, Miliband said the prime minister had priorities prioritised "tax cuts for millionaires" and suggested

"You can't be a One Nation prime minister if you raise taxes on ordinary families and cut taxes for millionaires. You can be a One Nation prime minister if all you seek to do is divide the country," he said.

Miliband added: "How many of his other Cabinet colleagues have cheques in the post from the millionaire's tax cut? And how can he justify this unfairness in Britain 2012."

Writing on The Huffington Post UK today, the president of YouGov Peter Kellner said that while Miliband still trails Cameron on many personal ratings, his speech had gone some way to closing the gap.

"The fact that the biggest jump, of 12 points, relates to making it clear what he stands for suggests that his 'one nation' message has made an impact," he said.

"YouGov's first survey since Miliband delivered his 'one nation' speech on Tuesday shows Labour's lead up to 14 points [45%-31%], matching its highest this year."

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