Afghanistan conflict making Britain safer, says Foreign Secretary

Research carried out as news broke of the deaths of eight soldiers in 24 hours – taking the British death toll in Afghanistan to more than the total in Iraq – revealed support for the war remained firm and backing for UK involvement had grown.

The poll showed that people appear reluctant to turn against a conflict while soldiers are fighting and dying on the front line, and the increasingly high-profile nature of the war appears to have strengthened public backing.

Opposition to the war, at 47%, is just ahead of support, at 46%, according to the ICM poll for the Guardian and the BBC's Newsnight.

Backing for Britain's role in the conflict has grown since the last time an ICM poll was conducted on the subject, in 2006.

It is up 15 points, from 31%. Opposition has fallen over the same period by six points, from 53%.

The poll also showed that 42% are in favour of the immediate withdrawal of British troops, and a further 14% want them home by the end of the year. These figures are almost identical to the results in 2006.

A further 36% want troops to stay as long as they are needed, again a similar proportion to 2006, when British casualties were lower.