The survey for the Sunday Express newspaper put David Cameron's Conservatives 11 points clear of Labour, restoring the sort of advantage the party enjoyed until a New Year rally by Gordon Brown's party narrowed the gap. The Conservatives scored 38 per cent, Labour polled 27 per cent and the Liberal Democrats 20 per cent in the survey by pollsters Angus Reid Public Opinion of 1,991 adults, conducted on Wednesday and Thursday.
The newspaper calculated that, if repeated in the election, this would make Cameron prime minister with a perilous overall majority of fewer than 10 seats in the House of Commons. It is widely expected that Prime Minister Brown will announce on Tuesday that the election will take place on May 6.
Another poll showed a strong improvement for the Conservatives, doubling their lead over Labour to 10 points compared to a similar survey last week. The YouGov survey for the Sunday Times newspaper put the Tories on 39 per cent, up two points, with Labour dropping three points to 29 per cent and the Liberal Democrats on 20 per cent. That would equate to a 20-seat majority, the newspaper said.