Reform are closing gap on Tories as Farage returns to the fray – with new poll revealing Conservative voters ‘like a lot’ of what he stands for

Nigel Farage‘s return to the political frontline has given his party a four-point boost, according to Lord Ashcroft’s latest poll.

In worrying news for Rishi SunakReform UK is closing the gap with the Conservativesthat has fallen from 23 percent of the vote share last week to 21 percent.

The resurgent right-wing party is now just six points behind on 15 percent – up from 11 percent last week when Farage suddenly announced he would stand as a candidate in Clacton, Essex, and take over the leadership of Reform.

The Work The party, meanwhile, continues to have a clear lead, but has fallen by four points to 43 percent, the poll shows.

When voters are asked who would make the best Prime Minister, Lord Ashcroft’s research – shared exclusively with the Daily Mail – continues Labor leader Sir Keir Starmer well before Mr Sunak. The Prime Minister is one percentage point higher than last week, at 20 percent – ​​despite his D-Day blunder when he left the Normandy ceremonies early – while the Labor leader is one point lower on 37 percent.

Worrying news for Rishi Sunak is that Reform UK is closing the gap with the Conservatives, which has fallen from 23 percent of the vote share last week to 21 percent.

But in today’s paper, Lord Ashcroft suggests that this indicates that things were ‘already so bad’ for the Prime Minister that ‘not even’ that blunder ‘could make them worse’.

The poll, conducted between June 6 and 10 with a sample size of 4,975 people, found that 47 percent of those leaning towards Reform UK said they would be more likely to vote Tory in this election if the Conservatives were more like the party of Farage came to resemble.

According to the poll, 45 percent of people who voted Conservative at the last general election in 2019 said they “liked a lot” of what Mr Farage stands for, while 83 percent of Labor voters said they “don’t like what he stands for’. Those in favor of reform also said Britain should leave the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR) – often accused of hampering Parliament’s efforts to tackle illegal immigration – by 78 to 13 percent .

When voters are asked who would make the best Prime Minister, Lord Ashcroft’s research – shared exclusively with the Daily Mail – continues to give Labor leader Sir Keir Starmer a wide lead over Mr Sunak.

But overall, those polled supported retaining the ECHR by 58 percent to 27 percent, with 16 percent saying they did not know.

Nearly two-thirds of voters (65 percent) think taxes will rise under Labour, compared to 57 percent among the Conservatives.

Many voters also expect both legal and illegal migration to increase under a Labor government. 33 percent say legal migration will be higher than it is now, and 34 percent illegal migration.

But they trust Labor to keep NHS waiting lists the same or reduce, with only 18 per cent expecting them to rise.

Sir Keir is still more confident in managing the economy than ex-chancellor Sunak, but he is down one point from last week.

The resurgent right-wing party is now just six points behind the Conservatives on 15 per cent – ​​up from 11 per cent last week when Farage suddenly announced he would stand as a candidate in Clacton, Essex, and that he would take up the post of Reform party would take over. leader

The poll was taken after the first live TV debate last week, in which the Prime Minister repeatedly claimed a Labor government would mean £2,000 in tax increases for every working household. Sir Keir later accused Mr Sunak of lying.

Lord Ashcroft writes that the return of Mr Farage – who initially said he would not stand for parliament – has “sent a shock through the campaign”. He added: ‘Most people currently leaning towards reform said they would be more likely to vote Tory in future elections if it became more like Farage’s party in terms of the things it said and the policies it pursued. she promised – previous Conservative voters were more so too. probably disagree.

At the same time, attentive voters see him as a troublemaker with a knack for publicity and wonder what his party stands for, other than controlling immigration.

“But in an otherwise uninspiring election, many see the reform as a way to gain the attention they believe has been denied them.”