Support for the Labour Party, in a state of civil war between Tony Blair and Gordon Brown loyalists, is at the lowest ebb since 1992. It is the starkest warning to the warring MPs of the cost of their feuding.
A Populus survey done for the Times showed David Cameron's Tories eight points ahead of Labour, with the Conservative Party favoured by 38 per cent and Labour by 30 per cent.
The shock results will chill Brown supporters more because if Tories maintain the lead, they cannot hope to either get Brown into Downing Street nor secure a fourth-term win.
The anti-Blair MPs and those who feel that all will be safe and sound for their party once Blair steps down will be further numbed by the finding of voters' intentions. With Blair still around, 31 per cent would vote for him as against 38 per cent for Cameron.
But if it is between Brown and Cameron the divide is larger. Brown is favoured by 31 per cent voters while Cameron by 41 per cent. Worse, 65 per cent said they expected Labour to lose at the next general election.
In a further setback for Brownites, the poll found that while 41 per cent of the Labour voters feel that Blair should leave before the next election, only 11 per cent want him out by the end of the year, which dissident MPs are demanding.
{{/usCountry}}In a further setback for Brownites, the poll found that while 41 per cent of the Labour voters feel that Blair should leave before the next election, only 11 per cent want him out by the end of the year, which dissident MPs are demanding.
{{/usCountry}}Possibly such dire warnings have prompted Brown to assure that Blair is going to talk to senior colleagues about the details of the "stable and orderly" transfer of power.