Brexit voters back Reform over Tories as Dowden hints on date

BREXIT voters are backing Reform over the Conservatives for the first time, polling has shown, as the Deputy Prime Minister hinted at the possibility of a general election in January.

Data published alongside a Yougov survey conducted on April 2 and 3 show more than a third (35 per cent) of supporters of Britain’s exit from the EU now plan to back Richard Tice’s party. Thirty-three per cent intend to vote for the Tories, down a percentage point on the previous week, while Reform was up by two points. Twenty-two per cent of Leave voters are set to back Labour.

The findings are a fresh blow for Rishi Sunak and a stark contrast to the 2019 general election when 74 per cent of Leave voters opted for the Conservatives under Boris Johnson’s leadership.

Mr Tice, Reform UK’S leader, told The Telegraph: “This growth is in line with everything we’re hearing as more people hear about Reform, what we stand for and our contract with the people.

“They’re voting for us and in particular those who believe in sovereignty, in defending our borders, in free speech, in stopping the gender madness, in stopping the net zero madness. People like what they hear and the courage with which we tell it as it is.

“We’re continuing to grow and grow. Something is happening out there, of that, there is no doubt, and the Tories are terrified.”

A Yougov poll published the previous week showed Reform was also outperforming the Tories among men and working-class voters in the C2DE social classes [unskilled workers and manual labourers], but Labour is still the most popular party with both groups.

Scarlett Maguire, a director at the polling firm J L Partners, said that the findings were “hugely significant” and a collapse in Brexiteer support was “driving the Conservatives’ downfall”.

The figures came as Oliver Dowden refused to rule out a general election next year as the Conservatives continue to trail Labour by about 20 points in the polls, a margin that has been broadly unchanged in the past few months.

While Mr Dowden indicated the election would take place this year, he did not provide a cast-iron commitment. The latest date the Prime Minister could hold a poll is Jan 28.

“As we get into an actual election campaign, and this almost certainly is an election year, we move from a kind of referendum on the Government to a choice,” he told Sky’s Sunday Morning with Trevor Phillips.

Mr Sunak has previously said that his “working assumption” is for the next election to be held in the second half of this year.