Jeremy Corbyn’s blitz of new policies announced at Labour’s conference last week have not won over new voters, a poll for HuffPost UK suggests.
According to the BMG survey, Labour now has a five point lead over the Conservatives – as Theresa May gathers her party in Birmingham for its own party conference.
But when people who said they would be voting, but not for Labour, were asked whether the raft of new policies would sway their choice, the response was lukewarm.
One of the party’s key announcements was a plan to force companies to transfer up to 10% of their shares to employees.
Of those asked, 52% said the plan would make no difference to how they voted and as many say that they would be less likely to vote Labour (24%) as more likely (25%).
A proposal to put a tax on owning a second home saw 26% of those asked saying it would make them more likely to vote Labour, but 20% said it would make them less likely to back the party and 54% said it would make no difference.
Although when specifically told the money raised would be spent on helping homeless children, the number of people who said it would make them more likely to back the party jumped to 31%.
Corbyn’s proposal to increase the number of windfarms led 26% of people to say they are likely to vote Labour, while 19% said it would make them less likely and 55% say it would make no difference.
Conservative Home Secretary Sajid Javid warned Tory activists in Birmingham last night that Corbyn now has a “real chance of winning power”.
His warning came as the party conference was consumed by infighting over the prime minister’s Chequers Brexit plan.
May will be braced for Boris Johnson’s arrival in Birmingham tomorrow where he is set to stage a huge rally of his supporters amid suggestions he is preparing a leadership bid.
A previous poll by HuffPost UK revealed Johnson is the public’s preferred candidate for PM should May step down – but he is less popular than Corbyn and would most likely lose a general election to Labour.
From a list of leading Tories, the former foreign secretary was backed by 20% of those asked who should take over as prime minister if May is forced to quit before the next election.
BMG interviewed a representative sample of 1,203 adults living in Great Britain online, on the 28st & 29nd September 2018. Data are weighted. BMG are members of the British Polling Council (BPC) and abide by their rules. Full results at www.bmgresearch.co.uk/polling