Tories’ lead over Labour down to five points – poll

THE Conservatives’ advantage over Labour has narrowed to just five points in the first opinion poll taken since Monday’s suicide bomb attack in Manchester.

The YouGov survey for The Times, conducted on Wednesday and Thursday, put the Conservatives down a point on the previous week on 43% and Labour up three on 38%, with Liberal Democrats up one on 10% and Ukip up one on 4%.

A TNS/Kantar poll taken before Monday night’s atrocity put the Conservatives down five points on 42%, with Labour up five on 34%, Lib Dems up a point on 9% and Ukip down two on 4%.

The results reflect a significant tightening in the race for the June 8 General Election, which was called in April at a point when Theresa May’s party was enjoying a seemingly unassailable lead of as much as 24 points over Jeremy Corbyn’s Labour.

Labour’s former deputy prime minister Lord Prescott, who has given his endorsement to Mr Corbyn’s drive for No 10, welcomed the findings on Twitter: “It’s happening! Game on.”

The YouGov poll showed a steep slump in popularity for both Mrs May and the Conservatives over the course of the campaign so far, and a sharp improvement for both Mr Corbyn and Labour.

But it suggested that voters may be returning to Tories after the bombing, with a nine-point improvement in the Prime Minister’s personal favourability rating and a six-point boost for her party compared with a poll carried out before the atrocity.

The Tory candidate for North Devon, Peter Heaton-Jones, said: “Jeremy Corbyn really could be PM in just two weeks. Only way to stop him is to vote Conservative.”