It’s official - Labour is no longer the party of the working classes. As reported in Monday’s edition of The Times, a major new poll has found that trade union members are now just as likely to support Reform UK as Labour. And Reform UK leader Nigel Farage is union members’ number one choice for prime minister.
The survey by JL Partners has the two parties tied on 28% among union members. Since the last general election in 2024, Labour has suffered a damning 20-point drop. Over that same two-year period, support for Reform UK among trade unionists has risen by 12 percentage points.
Among members of Britain’s two largest trade unions - Unite and the GMB - Reform UK has taken a significant lead over Labour. Members of Unite back Reform UK over Labour by six points; among GMB members, Reform UK’s lead rises to nine points.
No wonder. Of those polled, 62% said that Labour had “lost touch with working people”. Meanwhile, Reform UK leader Nigel Farage is now the most favourably viewed party leader among union members. He is also their most popular choice for prime minister.
It should be beyond clear now that Labour has lost the voters it was founded to represent. Speaking to The Times, Nigel Farage said: “This polling tells me exactly what I have seen on the campaign trail. Labour is no longer the party of the patriotic working class. That mantle now belongs to Reform, which is now the party of those who work hard but for whom the system doesn’t work.”
The May local elections confirmed the changing face of working-class politics. While Reform UK had remarkable successes across the country, it was particularly pronounced in former Labour heartlands like the North East, the North West, Yorkshire and the West Midlands. Many of these areas flipped from Labour to Reform UK. Voters here know that Labour does not speak for them anymore.
Reform UK is the only party that gives a voice to patriotic, working-class people. Last week we announced our new Hard Work Bonus policy, which would remove income tax on overtime earnings for most working people.
We will end tax on overtime. Overtime above a 40-hour working week for those earning less than £75,000 (i.e. for 90% of workers) will be tax free, benefitting numerous union members. We want the hard workers of alarm-clock Britain to keep more of the money they earn.
It could not be clearer that Labour is hopelessly out of touch with its former supporters. How does obsessing over Net Zero lunacy, threatening to rejoin the EU, and prioritising illegal immigrants over the British people help working people in any way?
Labour abandoned the working classes. It shouldn’t be surprising that the working classes have now abandoned Labour.
The survey by JL Partners has the two parties tied on 28% among union members. Since the last general election in 2024, Labour has suffered a damning 20-point drop. Over that same two-year period, support for Reform UK among trade unionists has risen by 12 percentage points.
Among members of Britain’s two largest trade unions - Unite and the GMB - Reform UK has taken a significant lead over Labour. Members of Unite back Reform UK over Labour by six points; among GMB members, Reform UK’s lead rises to nine points.
No wonder. Of those polled, 62% said that Labour had “lost touch with working people”. Meanwhile, Reform UK leader Nigel Farage is now the most favourably viewed party leader among union members. He is also their most popular choice for prime minister.
It should be beyond clear now that Labour has lost the voters it was founded to represent. Speaking to The Times, Nigel Farage said: “This polling tells me exactly what I have seen on the campaign trail. Labour is no longer the party of the patriotic working class. That mantle now belongs to Reform, which is now the party of those who work hard but for whom the system doesn’t work.”
The May local elections confirmed the changing face of working-class politics. While Reform UK had remarkable successes across the country, it was particularly pronounced in former Labour heartlands like the North East, the North West, Yorkshire and the West Midlands. Many of these areas flipped from Labour to Reform UK. Voters here know that Labour does not speak for them anymore.
Reform UK is the only party that gives a voice to patriotic, working-class people. Last week we announced our new Hard Work Bonus policy, which would remove income tax on overtime earnings for most working people.
We will end tax on overtime. Overtime above a 40-hour working week for those earning less than £75,000 (i.e. for 90% of workers) will be tax free, benefitting numerous union members. We want the hard workers of alarm-clock Britain to keep more of the money they earn.
It could not be clearer that Labour is hopelessly out of touch with its former supporters. How does obsessing over Net Zero lunacy, threatening to rejoin the EU, and prioritising illegal immigrants over the British people help working people in any way?
Labour abandoned the working classes. It shouldn’t be surprising that the working classes have now abandoned Labour.
