Reform UK is now only a single percentage point behind Labour - putting their leader Nigel Farage within touching distance of Number 10 at the next election.  

New polling data from YouGov, commissioned by Sky News, puts Reform on 24 per cent and Labour on 25 per cent - down a whopping 9 percentage points from their winning vote share at the 2024 UK election.  

With the Conservatives on 22 per cent, the UK electorate may be about to usher in a new epoch of three-way party politics.  

Reform UK has been making waves in the headlines recently after rumours that tech tycoon Elon Musk was planning to donate a $100million war chest to the party. 

While those rumours appeared to fizzle out following Mr Musk's claim that Mr Farage 'doesn't have what it takes', there is no question that Mr Farage has seen an extraordinary change in the British political landscape. 

In March 2024 Reform hit a then all-time high of 14 per cent, a figure they managed to retain in the general election later that year. 

But they are now close to doubling that figure, while the Tories, two months after Kemi Badenoch was elected leader, are languishing in third place - down 2 points from their general election performance. 

The new research puts Labour on 26 per cent, Reform UK on 25 per cent, the Tories on 22 per cent, the Lib Dems on 14 per cent and the Greens on 8 per cent.

That is a major turnaround from where things stood at the general election back in July, in which Labour topped the polls on 35 per cent, the Tories were a clear second on 24 per cent, Reform got 15 per cent, the Lib Dems 13 per cent and the Greens 7 per cent.  

Such a sea-change in voting intentions could spell a tricky parliament for Sir Keir Starmer who now faces potshots from two right-leaning parties in the face of a drastic loss of support for his own party.  

In general the assessment of Sir Keir's first six months in office is damning, with only 10 per cent of voters judging that he has been successful and an overwhelming majortity (60 per cent) saying he has been unsuccessful.

Labour insiders are also worried at how the party is hemorrhaging voters to other parties across the political spectrum.  

The new data found that they have retained only 54 per cent of supporters from the general election - while 7 percent have defected to the Lib Dems, 6 per cent to the Green Party, 5 per cent to Reform UK and 4 per cent to the Tories.

Meanwhile almost a quarter of those who voted Labour in the polls (23 per cent) either did not say, weren't sure or had decided not to vote at all. 

Labour also faces a problem with elderly voters in light of policies like the removal of the winter fuel allowance, with only 14 per cent of OAPs now saying they would cast their vote for Labour - down eight percentage points from the election. 

Nevertheless Labour can take some solace in the fact that the Tories appear to remain a toxic brand for voters. 

Reform UK are the least unpopular party, with a net favourability rating of -32, Labour a touch worse on -34 and the Tories down on -45. 

In total YouGov interviewed 2,279 voters in Great Britain on Sunday January 12 and Monday January 13 for the first of their weekly voting intention polls for Sky News, shared with The Times.