May called the snap election in a bid to strengthen her hand in negotiations on Britain's exit from the European Union, to win more time to deal with the impact of the divorce and to strengthen her grip on the Conservative Party.
The same number think the health service has got worse in the last three years, while three quarters say they would be prepared to pay an extra 1p in the pound on income tax for a better-funded NHS.
Following the refusal by Prime Minister Theresa May to face her rivals in a televised debate, the Sky News-Channel 4 co-hosted show saw Mrs May and Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn responding to questions from the audience and interviewer Jeremy Paxman instead.
The snap General Election will take place on June 8 with Conservative Leader Theresa May now leading the polls.
The Labour leader also rejected suggestions he would abolish the British monarchy, saying: "It's not on anybody's agenda, it's certainly not on my agenda".
The Labour leader replied that he's "not a dictator" and that the manifesto was the result of consultation with his party.
Corbyn eschewed numerous sound bites that characterize this form of politicking, disarming a studio audience with humor and making strides in erasing a public image as a tense far-left campaigner who has trouble connecting with the concerns of working-class voters.
Facing harsh questioning from Jeremy Paxman, May defended her about-face on Brexit.
Both Corbyn and conservative Prime Minister Theresa May resumed campaigning on Friday with national security in the spotlight after a brief suspension following Monday's bombing at a Manchester pop concert, which killed 22 people, including many teenagers, and wounded dozens more.
Urging love, Ariana Grande plans show for Manchester attack victims
In addition to those killed, 116 people received medical treatment at Manchester hospitals for wounds from the blast. The name of the man arrested in the early hours Friday and those of the seven others in custody were not released.
Shadow minister Ian Lavery, Labour's election coordinator and who's defending the Wansbeck seat in the north of England, spoke before Corbyn's speech and insisted that the Labour leader is at the start of a "long, long, long process" of creating a new style of politics in the UK.
"You can't answer a hypothetical question without all the evidence around", Corbyn said when asked whether he would be willing to launch a strike if British security officials told him they had someone in their crosshairs.
"We will make sure there is a deal".
Asked whether he would provide backing for fighters taking on the Islamic State terror group in Syria, Mr Corbyn said that the anti-IS forces on the ground were "complex and sometimes fighting each other".
She also pointed to the importance of community policing and highlighted cuts that had been made in this area.
Home Secretary Amber Rudd suggested victory for Mr Corbyn would "absolutely" increase the risk of future atrocities.
The studio audience again applauded loudly when Mr Paxman pointed out that Mrs May and her spokesmen had promised on six occasions since becoming PM that there would not be a general election before 2020.
"What one's bound to say is that if I was sitting in Brussels and I was looking at you as the person I had to negotiate with, I'd think "she's a blowhard who collapses at the first sign of gunfire"," he said.
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