Conservatives close gap on Labour to 2 points as Reform trails in polling

GB News reported that polling showed the Conservatives within two percentage points of Labour and ahead of Reform, with Kemi Badenoch closing the gap. The broadcaster said the figures showed no budget bounce for Andy Burnham. It said expectations of an early election after a budget success were fading.

The programme said the Conservative Party had been below 20% a year earlier, when Reform led, and that the Liberal Democrats were below 10%. In his opening monologue, Jacob Rees-Mogg said the right was easiest to unite under the Conservative banner. He argued that Reform had made mistakes and lacked the administrative backing or policy heft to be a serious prospect for government.

On the GB News panel, political commentator Benjamin Butterworth said the polling was not yet cause for celebration for the Conservatives. He said Labour might not be disappointed because the Conservatives regaining ground from Reform could be strategically helpful to Labour. He also said Labour remained on 28% and that many voters still did not trust the Conservatives.

Julia Lopez, also on the panel, said there was no room for complacency and the Conservatives still needed to rebuild trust with voters. She said the party was seeing an uptick among younger voters and pointed to policies on stamp duty, student loans and business taxes.