Reform UK have overtaken the Tories among voters aged over-55, a new poll has shown.
In the latest blow to Rishi Sunak ahead of the general election on 4 July, a Redfield & Wilton survey found Reform were backed by 19 per cent of 55 to 64-year-olds.
By comparison, the Conservatives were on just 14 per cent support among this age group.
Among voters aged over 65, who will mostly be pensioners, the Reform lead over the Tories was slightly smaller.
Nigel Farage‘s party were backed by 19 per cent of retirees, compared to the Conservatives’ 17 per cent support.
The level of support for Reform among all over-55s was up five points from last week’s Redfield & Wilton poll.
Meanwhile, Tory support among those aged 55 to 64 slumped seven points, while Conservative backing among those aged over 65 fell by six points from last week.
The latest survey was carried out after Mr Farage performed a stunning U-turn and announced he would now stand in the election and had taken over as Reform leader.
Mr Farage is planning to use his appearance in a BBC election debate tonight to attack the Prime Minister for skipping a major D-Day event.
It came as Tories expressed fears the huge row would further damage their standing among older voters.
Reform UK have overtaken the Tories among voters aged over-55, a new Redfield & Wilton Strategies poll has shown
Reform leader Nigel Farage is planning to use his appearance in a BBC election debate tonight to attack the Prime Minister for skipping a major D-Day event
Tories have expressed fears the huge row over Mr Sunak’s decision to leave Normandy earlu would further damage their standing among older voters
The PM this morning apologised for missing a major international D-Day ceremony and said it was a ‘mistake’ for him to leave before commemoration events were over.
He had appeared in northern France earlier on Thursday to pay tribute to veterans.
But Mr Sunak returned to Britain before commemoration events to mark the 80th anniversary of the Allied invasion of Western Europe were over.
This meant the PM missed a major international ceremony and gathering of world leaders on Omaha Beach.
It later emerged Mr Sunak had conducted an interview with ITV on his return to Britain, which he used to continue his election attack on Labour over tax.
Mr Farage, who was in northern France yesterday in a personal capacity, questioned why Mr Sunak felt he could skip the event with other world leaders.
The Reform UK leader will this evening face off against rivals from six other parties as he makes his first debate appearance since announcing his comeback to frontline politics.
Sources close to Mr Farage confirmed he would use the event to bring up Mr Sunak’s decision to return from Normandy early yesterday.
The latest Redfield & Wilton poll showed the Tories’ vote share of 19 per cent among all voters was their lowest ever since Mr Sunak became PM
The latest Redfield & Wilton poll showed the Tories’ vote share of 19 per cent among all voters was their lowest ever since Mr Sunak became PM, while Reform were on their highest level of support on 17 per cent.
Labour were found to be on 42 per cent support, giving them a 23-point lead over the Conservatives.
Sir Keir Starmer’s party was shown to hold a lead over the Tories among every age group.
Labour’s margin over the Conservatives ranged from 42 points among those aged 18-24 (50 per cent vs 8 per cent) to 11 points with those aged 45-54 (33 per cent vs 22 per cent).
Reform UK attracted almost a fifth of the vote (19 per cent) among each of the three oldest age groups – 45-54, 55-64, and 65+ — but enjoyed the support of only 7 per cent of those aged 18-24.
Mr Sunak was today facing anger from within Tory ranks over his decision to skip the international D-Day event, with fears he had dealt a shattering blow to the Conservatives’ general election hopes.
A former minister told MailOnline: ‘It simply underlines what dreadful advice he gets from the No10 operation.
‘And begs the question why he went to the country when D-Day was obviously a huge event.
‘He could have been seen as an international statesman, rather than someone who doesn’t show respect to the fallen.
‘And bear in mind, too, that polls already show [Nigel] Farage ahead among the over-55s.’
One Tory defending a northern seat said it could be as bad as Theresa May’s 2017 social care announcement, which prompted her notorious ‘nothing has changed’ U-turn. ‘We’ll know over the next week,’ they said.
Another told MailOnline the humilating episode would do particular damage with the older generation of voters the party has been targeting.
They expressed worries about a Conservative wipeout on 4 July, saying: ‘Honestly fear a rump of 70 led by Priti [Patel] that strikes a deal with Farage in 18 months is becoming possible, even likely.’
Redfield & Wilton polled 2,000 British voters online between 5 and 6 June.