A dramatic shift in polling has emerged showing that Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s decision to stand firm against pressure from US President Donald Trump over the war in Iran has been met with notable support among the electorate, a poll has found.

According to the JL Partners survey, Sir Keir’s personal approval rating increases sharply when respondents are reminded of his public differences with the US president over the conflict, compared with how he is viewed without that context.

Although Sir Keir is still seen overall in negative terms at minus 14 in the poll, that net standing is significantly improved from the minus 40 he records when his position on the war is not highlighted to respondents.

The prime minister’s reluctance to permit the use of British military bases in initial strikes on Iran stood in stark contrast to comments from Conservative Party leader Kemi Badenoch and Reform’s Nigel Farage, both of whom criticised him for resisting calls to offer more robust support for the United States.

Sir Keir has repeatedly refused to endorse Mr Trump’s broader declaration of war on Iran, prompting a series of withering attacks from the US president, including one in which Mr Trump claimed the prime minister was “no Churchill” in his leadership.

For his part, the prime minister said he would not “hang on the president’s latest words” when confronted with criticism, signalling that he would not be swayed by the US leader’s repeated barbs.

Tom Lubbock, co-founder of JL Partners, said:

“If you’re just looking at the cold electoral politics, there is a major reputational premium to be gained for the prime minister positioning himself in opposition to the US president on the Iran conflict. It has worked for a variety of leaders around the world. The survey suggests that the more people are aware of the prime minister’s disagreement with the US president, the more his standing improves.”

The survey was carried out with a split sample of respondents, with one half asked their view of Sir Keir without context and the other half asked the same question after being reminded of his distancing from Mr Trump’s stance and the subsequent tensions in the UK-US relationship.

While this polling surge offers a potential lifeline for the prime minister ahead of May’s local elections, Starmer’s broader net approval remains challenged by public perceptions of his premiership, which recent polling suggests is under significant pressure amid wider domestic issues and ongoing debates about foreign policy.