Nigel Farage and the Brexit Party aren’t stealing votes from Labour

Nigel Farage and Christopher Barker, Brexit Party candidate for Great Grimsby constituency. Photograph: Danny Lawson/PA Wire. - Credit: PA

Claims that Labour is haemorrhaging votes to the Brexit Party appear unfounded, according to YouGov poll.

Despite Farage’s claims that he was taking the fight to Jeremy Corbyn’s party, and regularly claimed he would park the tanks on Labour’s lawn in their heartlands, there appears to be little evidence of this happening.

The latest YouGov polling figures show that out of Labour’s voters in 2017, just 4% would now back Nigel Farage’s organisation.

Farage had made Labour leave voters his “number one target” in recent weeks.

He said: “We are going to hurt the Labour Party in the most extraordinary way. We’ll do it in South Wales, we’ll do it in the Midlands, we’ll do it in the north of England.

“Those Labour voters have been completely betrayed by the Labour Party. They are my number one target. I got those votes in 2015, I’ll do it again.”

But the polling statistics cast doubt on whether he will be able to do it.

A total of 65% of Labour voters in 2017 will back the party again in 2019, with the biggest haemorrhaging of support going to the Lib Dems.

The polling found 14% were now backing Jo Swinson’s party, and 5% support the Green Party.

While the Tories have had some success in winning over Labour voters – just 9% said they would back Boris Johnson’s party.