Burnham bounce over? Labour loses lead over Reform just moments after PM leaves UK for early holiday

The Prime Minister was accused of 'going on a jolly' after beating every other modern Prime Minister to an unfortunate accolade

Andy Burnham's Labour Party has lost its lead over Reform UK in a bombshell poll released by YouGov.

The Prime Minister, who jetted off on holiday after spending just 15 days in No10, was expected to benefit from a honeymoon bounce after replacing Sir Keir Starmer last month.

However, YouGov's polling already suggests Nigel Farage's party regained the lead after Mr Burnham was credited last week with ending Reform UK's 16 months of dominance.

Reform UK secured a one-point boost to open up a slim advantage over Labour on 23 per cent.

Meanwhile, Labour's support remains unchanged since YouGov's previous poll the week before, leaving Mr Burnham's party on 22 per cent.

Despite Kemi Badenoch's personal appraisal, the Tories slipped down by two points to return to third place.

Dr Patrick English, YouGov’s head of elections and political data, told The Telegraph: “I would say that there certainly has been a positive response from the British public to Labour’s removal of Keir Starmer – who was, by the end of his prime ministership, one of the most unpopular prime ministers we’d ever seen – and replacement with Andy Burnham, who is currently the most positively rated party leader that we are measuring.

“There has been a response there, and I think that’s to be expected, but even though Burnham leads our favouritability ratings, he is not hugely popular.

"So I don’t think we should expect a massive surge in Labour support, and I would caution expectations in that regard because the British public still don’t think that the Government is doing a brilliant job.

"They still don’t think they’re addressing their concerns around the cost of living and around immigration, and they’re going to want to see actual improvement and actual changes in their day-to-day lives before they start giving Labour more reward in the polls and more reward at the ballot box.”

YouGov initially handed Mr Burnham a modest boost in the polls after the ex-Greater Manchester Mayor secured the keys to No10 last month.

A poll carried out in Mr Burnham's first week as Prime Minister found Labour gained four per cent, while Reform UK was down two per cent.

However, Mr Burnham continues to command a strong personal rating compared to Mr Farage.

The 56-year-old finds himself on a net positive score of three per cent, with Mr Farage dropping to a new low of minus 46.

Revelations about the Reform UK leader's gifts and donations appear to have taken their toll on the party's overall standing with voters.

Reform UK had averaged around 30 per cent at its peak last December, with Labour left languishing on just 20 per cent and the Tories in a distant third on 17.5 per cent.

After coming under sustained pressure over gifts from the Thai-based cryptocurrency billionaire Christopher Harborne and convicted fraudster George Cottrell, Mr Farage triggered a by-election in Clacton.

The main parties refused to field candidates in the crunch vote, which will take place on August 13.

Mr Farage is instead facing a challenge from satirical candidate Count Binface, Reclaim's Laurence Fox and Rejoin EU's John Stevens.

A record-breaking 34 candidates have put themselves forward to stand in Clacton.

However, Mr Farage is still expected to face pressure from the parliamentary authorities if he secures victory next Thursday.

The standards commissioner looks poised to continue his investigation into the Reform UK leader, with Mr Farage at risk of facing a second by-election if he is suspended for more than 10 days.

However, such a scenario appears unlikely to end Mr Farage's political career as a bombshell survey revealed the ex-MEP is likely to extend his lead over his main rivals in the seaside seat.

Survation found 57 per cent of voters would now back Mr Farage, up from 46 per cent at the last general election.

Meanwhile, Tory support collapsed from 28 per cent to just 11 per cent, with Labour dropping from 17 per cent to nine per cent.

Other challenger parties were projected to make steady inroads in Clacton, including the Green Party and Liberal Democrats.