Brown's Labour party gains ground on Cameron's Conservatives

Nov 22, 2009, 16:53 GMT

London - British Prime Minister Gordon Brown's Labour Party has narrowed its electoral gap to the opposition Conservatives, or Tories, to just 6 points, according to a poll for the Observer newspaper released Sunday.

In the Ipsos Mori poll, the Labour Party polled at 31 per cent, versus 37 per cent for David Cameron's Tories - the narrowest gap in more than a year.

One year ago, the Tories polled 20 points higher than Brown's Labour Party. The parliamentary elections are now only about six months away.

Should the election turn out like the poll, the Conservatives would have the most seats in parliament, but lack enough for an absolute majority necessary for governing.

It would only be the second time since the Second World War that a 'hung parliament' would result in a coalition government. The Liberal Democrats, who received 17 per cent of the votes in the poll, have said they would support the party receiving the most votes.

The poll attributed Brown's improved showing to increasing public optimism on the economy. Some 46 per cent now believe the situation will improve in the coming year. However, 23 per cent predicted a downturn.

Though his Labour Party gained percentage points, Brown himself continues to have poor personal ratings. Only 34 per cent of those polled approved of the Prime Minister's job performance, compared with 48 per cent for Cameron.