British Prime Minister Tony Blair and his Labour Party have fallen in public opinion ratings following the political crisis sparked by the death of British government scientist Dr David Kelly.
An ICM poll published in today's Guardiannewspaper showed public faith in Mr Blair's trustworthiness had slumped by 12 points in the past month to 39 per cent.
It also showed Blair's personal approval rating down to minus 17 from plus seven on the "Baghdad Bounce" in the immediate aftermath of the war to oust Iraqi President Saddam Hussein.
At the same time, the government's lead over the opposition Conservatives dropped to just two points from 12 two months ago, according to the telephone poll taken shortly after the discovery on Friday of the body of weapons expert Dr Kelly.
The poll showed Labour support at 36 per cent compared to the Conservatives who were static on 34 per cent.
An inquest into the death of Dr Kelly, who bled to death from a slit left wrist, was opened and adjourned yesterday - the same day the government appointed judge Lord Hutton to head an independent inquiry into his death.
The BBC acknowledged Dr Kelly was the main source for a report by defence correspondent Mr Andrew Gilligan claiming that Mr Blair's officials deliberately distorted a report to make it seem the threat of Iraqi weapons of mass destruction was imminent.
Mr Blair used the threat to back his case for war against Iraq, and he and his officials have strongly rejected the accusation of deliberate distortion.
But the fact that the Ministry of Defence publicly named Dr Kelly as the source before the BBC admission, and the public mauling he received by a parliamentary committee have badly damaged the government's faltering credibility.
Political analysts say Dr Kelly's death has presented the British prime minister with the worst political crisis of his six-year rule - although the ICM poll showed support for him among Labour voters solid at 75 per cent.