Fewer than a fifth of voters see Ed Miliband as a prime minister in waiting, according to a new poll for The Times.

Only 19 per cent said that they could imagine Mr Miliband in Downing Street, unchanged from September 2012, when YouGov first asked the question.

The figures show the Labour leader lagging significantly behind David Cameron when the Conservative leader was in Opposition, and suggest that Mr Miliband’s attacks on the energy companies and banks have failed to persuade voters he is ready to lead the country.

Although the numbers saying they could see him enter No 10 rose marginally after the Labour Party conferences of 2012 and 2013 — reaching 23 per cent last year — they fell back both times.