Prime Minister Julia Gillard says she will not back away from her plan to price carbon despite a new opinion poll showing falling public support for her leadership.
The latest Newspoll shows Federal Opposition Leader Tony Abbott overtaking Ms Gillard as preferred prime minister for the first time.
The poll, published in today’s Australian newspaper, shows 41 per cent of people prefer Mr Abbott, compared to 39 per cent for Julia Gillard.
Ms Gillard’s satisfaction rating is down two points to 28 per cent, her lowest since becoming leader.
Her satisfaction rating has now dropped by 22 points since she announced a carbon tax.
Labor’s primary vote has slipped one point to 30 per cent, while the Coalition’s support remains steady at 46 per cent.
The Coalition leads Labor by 55 points to 45 points after preferences.
Speaking to ABC News Breakfast this morning, Ms Gillard said the Government was locked in to “tough reform” on the carbon price and predicted the politics of the deal could get tougher before they get easier.
“I’m determined to push on with the agenda because it’s the right thing to do for the country’s future,” she said.
“We need to tackle climate change, we need to cut the amount of carbon we put in the atmosphere.
“I’m not going to put this country’s future in the too-hard basket and just hope that it will go away.”
