Labour to sweep London in local elections with best result for any party since 1968, new poll suggests

Labour is on course for a major election triumph in London that will see it seize Tory strongholds and win a greater share of the vote than any party for 50 years, a new poll has indicated.

The YouGov survey for Queen Mary University of London recorded 54 per cent of voters in the capital saying they would vote for the party in May’s elections, compared to just 28 per cent for the Conservatives.

As a result, its forecast shows Labour is set to seize several Tory-held councils, including the flagship boroughs of Barnet, Wandsworth and Westminster.

It comes after The Independent revealed earlier this month the Conservatives still had no campaign plan for the elections in place.

The poll suggests Labour will see an increase on its 2014 London elections results, which saw the party win 43 per cent of the popular vote - their highest since 1971 – and control of 20 out of 32 councils.

In inner London, the gap between the two dominant parties is even starker, with 67 per cent of respondents backing Labour, compared to just 17 per cent for the Tories.

Jeremy Corbyn’s party also leads the Conservatives in outer London by 13 points.

The Liberal Democrats are on 11 per cent, which is almost identical to their 2014 vote share, though they are up two per cent in Greater London.

“Basically, this poll means that the Conservatives are facing difficulties in almost every London council they still control,” Philip Cowley, Professor of Politics at Queen Mary, said.

He warned Theresa May that even Kensington and Chelsea, which has remained in Tory hands for 50 years, could potentially be under threat post-Grenfell.

A string of high-profile defeats is likely to make key Conservative London MPs begin to worry about their own constituencies, including Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson, given Labour activists have launched a campaign to unseat him in Uxbridge.

MPs have said if the local elections lead to a complete meltdown, with Tories losing out in both London and Birmingham to Labour, then Ms May could face a further leadership challenge.

The poll shows Labour leading the Conservatives among men and women, all age groups below 65+, and both white and ethnic minority voters. Despite concerns over the party’s approach to Brexit, 65 per cent of Remain voters in London plan to vote for Labour.