Conservative hopes that its European election success would herald a rise in party fortunes received a blow yesterday with the publication of an opinion poll which found support among voters unchanged.
The MORI poll for the London Times found that Mr William Hague's Tory party has failed to capitalise on its successful showing in the European elections last month, although his personal rating is creeping upwards.
Support for the Tories was steady at 28 per cent among 2,028 voters polled last weekend. The Labour government still tops the poll with 51 per cent, slipping back 1 per cent after being pushed into second place by the Tories in the European elections. The Liberal Democrats were third with 13 per cent, also down 1 per cent.
Better news for Mr Hague came in his personal rating, which has risen. Some 23 per cent of voters were satisfied with Mr Hague's leadership, while 50 per cent were dissatisfied, an improvement on 20 per cent and 55 per cent respectively.
Among Tory supporters, 42 per cent were satisfied with Mr Hague's performance and 44 per cent dissatisfied, which is a major improvement on 29 per cent and 57 per cent respectively.