London: Prime Minister Tony Blair's governing Labour Party has fallen to a 14-year low, according to an opinion poll published on Tuesday.
Labour fell to 30 per cent support in the Populus poll commissioned by The Times newspaper, eight points behind the main opposition Conservatives.
Labour's level of support was down six points from the previous month.
The drop apparently reflected the impact of revelations that more than a thousand foreign prisoners had been released without being considered for deportation, Deputy Prime Minister John Prescott's admission of an extramarital affair and continued calls from some sections of the LabourParty for Blair to stand down.
Labour finished in third place in local government elections last week, and Blair reacted on Friday by shaking up his Cabinet.
He dismissed Home Secretary Charles Clarke, who was held responsible for the prisoners debacle, and Foreign Secretary Jack Straw was demoted.
In the poll, 72 per cent of respondents agreed with the statement that the reshuffle was intended to distract attention from the government's problems, and 54 percent said the government's biggest problem was Blair himself.
The poll was based on telephone interviews with 1,509 adults on Friday, Saturday and Sunday, and had a margin of error of 3 per centage points.
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