New survey reveals Labour’s vote in the north west may rise
LABOUR’S vote may be set to go up in the north west against a national trend, according to an exclusive nationwide survey of voting intentions.
Data from an online survey of almost 10,000 people shows 45 percent of respondents supported Labour at the 2015 election - but 48pc said they planned to do so at the general election on June 8.
The Conservatives are also on course to increase their share of the vote in the region.
While 26pc of respondents in the north west voted Tory in 2015, 29pc plan to do so this time.
UKIP appear to be the big losers in the region.
Only six percent of people say they plan to back the party this time, compared to nine percent who said they voted UKIP in 2015.
Both the Lib Dems and the Greens could see similar vote shares to last time. Seven percent said they planned to vote Lib Dem and five percent for the Greens.
Jeremy Corbyn and his party seem to have strongest support in the north west among the young.
Nearly two-thirds (65pc) of people aged 18 to 24 said they intended to vote Labour, while 52pc of those aged 65 and over said they planned to vote for the Conservatives.
The survey reveals voters in the north west are split on whether Brexit will be a factor in how they vote on June 8, with exactly half saying yes and half saying no.
People in the region are more likely to believe Theresa May would be a better Brexit negotiator than Jeremy Corbyn, with 48pc saying they think she’ll do the best job, compared to 41pc for the Labour leader.
Confidence in Theresa May increases with age. Some 70pc of those aged 65 and over think she would do the best job negotiating Brexit.
Those aged under 35 are more likely to back Jeremy Corbyn as the best negotiator, with 57pc of those who are aged 25 to 34 and 55pc of those aged 18 to 24 saying that he would do the best job.
More than a quarter of people overall, 26pc, are considering voting tactically in the general election, with a further 17pc saying that they don’t know.
The over-65s were the least likely to be considering a tactical vote. Some 72pc in that age group said they weren’t, compared to just 43pc of 18 to 24-year-olds who have ruled it out.
The survey was carried out online in partnership with Google Surveys on newspaper websites, publisher sites and Google’s native app. A total of 9,741 people completed it nationwide.