Labour vote solidifies after manifesto launch
Labour sems to have enjoyed a jump in support after its manifesto launch, gaining eight points in the latest Ipsos MORI/Evening Standard poll. The party has climbed from 26 to 34 points, while the Conservatives hold steady on 49 per cent.
The poll is catastrophic for UKIP, whose support has fallen to two per cent, which leaves the Greens as the fourth-largest party on three per cent. Tim Farron will be disappointed with the Liberal Democrats’ performance — their support is down to seven per cent, equivalent to the 2015 voteshare.
Jeremy Corbyn and his team will take comfort in the poll, which suggests that the Labour vote is solidifying as the campaign advances.
However, Gideon Skinner of Ipsos MORI warns that:
“Labour shouldn’t get too carried away by the rise they see in the polls. The focus on their manifesto may have helped them this week, but on many fundamentals such as leadership the public still puts them a long way behind the Conservatives, and their vote is much softer, with one in six of their supporters considering voting for Theresa May’s party.”
Worth noting is the fact that this poll gives 83 per cent of the public’s support to the two main parties, compared to just 67.3 per cent in 2015.
One Response to “Labour gains eight points in new poll, narrowing Conservative lead”
Craig Mackay
Labour could, however, cheer themselves up by remembering that before the local election the Tories had a 22% poll lead. The figures themselves gave them an 11% lead on the day. When David Cameron got his majority of 17 in 2015 he had a lead over Labour on the day of 7%. So things are getting close. There is an increasing realisation that a government led by Jeremy Corbyn, chaotic and shambolic as it might well be, might just be much better for the poor and the just about managing and even the relatively well off than any right-wing Tory government led by the saintly Theresa May.