A majority of Britons believe Tony Blair government's foreign policy has increased the risk of terror attacks and want the country to distance itself from America and set a timetable for troop withdrawal from Iraq, an opinion poll has found.
The results of the Populus poll published on Wednesday underline the unpopularity of Blair's Middle Eastern policy and show a majority of voters believe there is a direct connection with terrorist plots and attacks at home.
The poll was undertaken over the weekend as news came of the death of 14 British servicemen on board a crashed Nimrod aircraft in Afghanistan.
Populus interviewed 1,502 adults by telephone from September 1 to 3.
Nearly three quarters of the public (73 per cent) believe that the risk of terror attacks on Britain had increased significantly due to the government's foreign policy, especially its support for the Iraq invasion and refusal to demand a ceasefire by Israel in the recent war against Hezbollah in Lebanon, the poll published in the Times found.
Sixty-two per cent agree that "in order to reduce the risk of future terror attacks, the Government should change its policy, in particular by distancing itself from America, being more critical of Israel and declaring a timetable for withdrawing from Iraq".
{{/usCountry}}Sixty-two per cent agree that "in order to reduce the risk of future terror attacks, the Government should change its policy, in particular by distancing itself from America, being more critical of Israel and declaring a timetable for withdrawing from Iraq".
{{/usCountry}}Women (66 per cent) and Liberal Democrat voters (74 per cent) agree with this view particularly strongly.