Gordon Brown has kept Labour ahead of the Tories in the polls after his first week in power - but with a narrowed lead of two points.
The ruling party is on 37% in the ICM poll for the Sunday Mirror, down two points on the week before, with the Conservatives unchanged on 35%.
But in spite of the drop, the new Prime Minister will be encouraged by evidence that his handling of crises such as the terror attacks and floods has impressed.
Most voters (52%) said he had "performed better than expected" since taking over at Downing Street on June 27, helping him retain the "Brown bounce" some predicted would fall away.
And they backed him over Tory rival David Cameron to handle a range of key issues, including traditional Tory strong areas such as law and order and immigration.
More than half (52%) picked him as the best party leader to deal with terrorism, a 32-point lead over Mr Cameron and he also enjoyed a seven-point advantage (43% to 37%) on the environment.
The Liberal Democrats are on 17%.
ICM interviewed a random sample of 1,006 adults by phone on July 4 and 5.
