Nigel Farage support has ‘topped out’, says pollster

Robert Hayward, a Conservative peer and election expert, told The Independent that the party appears to have “topped out” in support.

His comments follow two council by-election losses last week where Reform was defending seats — a first for the party.

In Newark West, Nottinghamshire, the Conservatives gained a seat in Robert Jenrick’s constituency. In Benfieldside, County Durham, the Liberal Democrats came out on top.

Both seats had previously been won by Reform in recent local elections. But the councillors stood down shortly after being elected, triggering the by-elections.

Hayward said the results, alongside a slight dip in Reform’s polling numbers, could point to trouble ahead for Nigel Farage.

The findings cast doubt on Reform’s momentum heading into the next general election.

Meanwhile, senior Labour figures and business leaders have urged Keir Starmer to “stop obsessing” over the party and instead consider more left wing policies, like a wealth tax.

Former Labour leader Neil Kinnock is the most recent figure to call for the revenue raiser.

He told Sky News: “This is a country which is very substantially fed up with the fact that whatever happens in the world, whatever happens in the UK, the same interests come out on top, unscathed all the time, while everybody else is paying more for gutted services.”

Labour MPs have also called for the tax in recent months.

“A 2 per cent tax on assets above £10 million would raise £24 billion – many times more than the government is trying to save by taking money from disabled people,” Leeds East MP Richard Burgon told The London Economic last month. I’ll be presenting my petition to Parliament before the vote on the disability benefit cuts bill as part of the campaign to get as many MPs as possible to vote down these cruel cuts.”

A spokesman for the prime minister said: “We have repeatedly said that those with the broadest shoulders should carry the greatest burden and the choices we’ve made reflect that.

“The top 1% of taxpayers contribute nearly a third of income tax.

“Revenue from wealth and asset taxes like capital gains tax and inheritance tax go towards funding tens of billions of pounds for the public services.