Keir Starmer faces crisis in battle with Nigel Farage for support of army of older Britons

Labour's hopes of clinging on to power have been dealt a blow with new evidence that millions of older voters would rather live in a country where Nigel Farage is prime minister. The Labour faithful are gathering for their annual conference in Liverpool, with the vast majority of Britons thinking they are pushing the country in the wrong direction.

The party has been rocked by the resignation of Angela Rayner as Deputy Prime Minister and the exit of Lord Mandelson as US ambassador. New Ipsos polling shows the lion's share of voters do not think the Labour Government is acting with competence or integrity. The finding that 67% of Britons think the Government is doing a "bad job" on reducing the cost of living will trigger alarm bells.

Speculation about Sir Keir Starmer's future in the top job has surged in the wake of Mayor of Greater Manchester Andy Burnham saying that Labour MPs had encouraged him to stand for the leadership.

Zack Polanski, the newly elected leader of the Green Party, said: "This will probably be Starmer's last conference."

The shift by older voters - who are more likely to take part in elections than younger counterparts - towards Reform UK will worry Labour strategists. When presented with a straight choice of a Government led by Sir Keir or Mr Farage, just 27% of those aged 55-75 opted for the Labour leader, while 48% chose his Reform counterpart.

Labour will fear that anger over the shock axing of universal entitlement for winter fuel support for pensioners will not have faded by the next election, despite the decision to restore it for millions of citizens.

Reform UK MP Lee Anderson said: "Given Labour's disastrous track record in office over the last 14 months, including their humiliating U-turn on the winter fuel payment, it's no wonder so many are turning to Reform."

Former Conservative Brexit minister David Jones, who now supports Reform, said: "For many voters aged 55 and over, Nigel Farage speaks more directly to their concerns about security, national identity and the cost of living, while Starmer comes across as cautious and managerial. It's not surprising that a figure who is plain-spoken, direct and unapologetic can cut through more strongly with that generation."

Sir Jake Berry, a former Tory chairman who now backs Mr Farage's party, was in no doubt why older citizens were backing Reform, saying: "Uncontrolled, low-skilled immigration has changed everyday life, people do not have pride of place where they live and we live in a country where nothing works."

Support for Labour is stronger among younger voters, and overall 38% of respondents say they would rather have Sir Keir as PM, with 35% opting for Mr Farage in a straight choice. However, 67% of Britons said the country is going in the wrong direction.

Conservative Party chairman Kevin Hollinrake said: "A dud from day one, run by careerists, captured by unions, and consumed by internal scandal, Keir's Starmer's Labour government has been a disaster for Britain, and the public have had enough."

He said that under Labour, "Britain is handed "drift, dysfunction, and higher taxes".

The Ipsos polling also found 73% said Ms Rayner was right to resign, and 63% had little or no confidence the country is being run "properly, competently and seriously" or "with integrity".

A Labour MP said this was "massively damaging", adding: "The fact is [Sir Keir] said we'd have a Government beyond reproach. The trouble is, you can't control everybody and somewhere, even in the cabinet, somebody is doing something they shouldn't be doing and it will come out as it always does."

The polling highlights a clear strength for Mr Farage. Sixty-four percent say it is clear what he stands for - this compares with 35% for Sir Keir and 33% for the Conservatives' Kemi Badenoch.