Rows over freebies and hints of unrest in No 10 have soured the mood of July’s victory – and the poll numbers are plunging already

• Starmer now less popular than Rishi Sunak
• PM vows to protect public services from fresh austerity

An unlikely mood has descended on Labour MPs, officials and ministers as they head to Liverpool for the first party conference of an incoming Labour government since 1997. They secured a 174-seat landslide majority little more than two months ago, but the words being used to describe the atmosphere are not like they were 27 years ago. Some characterise it as surreal; others are more despairing that a series of “unforced errors” have robbed Keir Starmer and his team of their political honeymoon.

“What should have been a victory parade, and the height of the administration’s powers, has already stalled,” said one MP. “Hardly the most auspicious of starts for the next five years.”