Ukip set to win in European elections, poll suggests

Nigel Farage's party are steaming ahead of the Conservatives and Labour, as public trust in mainstream politicians flounders

Ukip had the backing of 31 per cent of respondents in the YouGov poll for Sky News (Getty Images)

Ukip is on track for victory in the European elections later this month, according to a YouGov poll for Sky News.

Nigel Farage’s anti-EU party had the support of nearly a third (31 per cent) of respondents, putting it six points ahead of Labour on 25 per cent.

The Conservatives were in third place with 23 per cent, while the Liberal Democrats amassed just nine per cent of votes.

The poll, which was carried out last week, shows that Ukip has been gaining momentum not only at the cost of the Tories, but also of Labour.

While support for the Conservatives (and the Liberal Democrats) has remained fairly static, Labour has seen a decrease from a high of 32 points at the beginning of the year to 25 in this latest poll – its lowest figure to date.

The poll suggested that Ukip is benefiting from the lack of public trust in the main parties. Just 22 per cent of respondents said they trusted Westminster politicians, compared to 72 per cent who said they didn’t.

This was a trend that was reflected throughout Europe. In Germany 70 per cent said they didn’t trust mainstream politicians, while in Denmark the figure was 61 per cent, in Sweden it was 59 per cent and in Finland 57 per cent.

And in France over three-quarters (78 per cent) of respondents said they did not trust mainstream politicians.

On Monday Prime Minister David Cameron said he believed support for Ukip had been fuelled by the recession.

Appearing on ITV's Good Morning Britain, the Tory leader said the economic crisis made it “quite easy for someone to come along with some popular messages and some great rhetoric”.

But he said his was the only political party to be able to offer a referendum on Britain's membership of the European Union.

“The truth about British politics is you'll only get that with me as British prime minister,” he said.

“Labour and the Liberals won't give you a referendum, Ukip can't give you a referendum. I offer a clear plan: reform, renegotiation, referendum - all very much in Britain's interests.”

Additional reporting by Press Association

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