Reform Leads or Levels With Labour as Burnham Takes Over
Mr Burnham inherits a party under pressure from Reform UK. A YouGov poll for The Times and Sky News on 12-13 July put Reform on 24 per cent, five points clear of the Conservatives and Labour on 19 apiece. A separate Survation survey found Labour and Reform tied on 24 per cent each — Labour’s largest single upward movement since the 2024 general election.
Survation’s named-leader test found Labour under Mr Burnham level with Reform under Nigel Farage on 24 per cent each, suggesting the new leader may already be lifting his party’s standing after more than a year of Reform dominance. The pollster noted Labour was “up five points” on its mid-June reading while Reform slipped three. Professor Menon has pointed to research showing almost 70 per cent of voters are “willing to do whatever it takes” to stop Reform being elected. Watch whether the Burnham bounce holds once his Cabinet and Budget choices land.