Labour takes eight-point lead over Tories in first YouGov poll since election

YouGov poll puts Labour on 46 per cent of the vote

Corbynistas have been less magnanimous in their internal victory than their opponents have been in defeat (PA)

Jeremy Corbyn’s party now has an eight-point lead over Theresa May’s Conservatives, according to a poll appearing to show Labour enjoying a post-election boost.

The YouGov poll for The Times put the Tories on 38 per cent and Labour on 46. The Liberal Democrats were on six per cent of the vote, while Ukip support dropped to four per cent.

In the last month pollster ICM put Labour two points ahead of the Tories while another firm, Opinium, found Labour had a six-point lead.

The remarkable turnaround in Labour’s position in the polls comes nearly one month on from the inconclusive general election after which Ms May was forced to seek a contentious supply-and-confidence agreement with the Democratic Unionist Party in a bid to cling to power – at the cost of £1bn.

When Ms May called the election, the Conservatives were enjoying a record surge in the polls not experienced since the 1980s.

But after a disastrous election campaign, including an unprecedented U-turn on a manifesto commitment to social care reform, the party has since fallen behind Labour.

The Tories fell short of a majority at the vote, losing 13 seats and depriving the party of the majority won under the former Prime Minister, David Cameron, just two years ago. Labour achieved 40 per cent of the share of the vote and won an extra 33 seats.

The poll could also create further tension within the Conservative party over the Prime Minister’s future. She has insisted she will remain in post until at least 2022, when the next general election is pencilled in for. One survey following the general election by pollster Survation found that almost half of voters – or 49 per cent – thought Ms May should resign after the calamitous result with 38 per cent believing she continue in the role in Downing Street.

A separate poll by ICM for the Guardian found Ms May’s net approval rating is now negative while Mr Corbyn’s is positive – a reversal of the pre-election trend. According to the poll, 44 per cent of respondents said the Labour leader was doing a “good job” and 28 per cent had a similar opinion of the Prime Minister.