LABOUR'S backing in the West Midlands may be on the rise to give them a lead over the Conservatives, according to an exclusive nationwide survey of voting intentions.

Across the region, 41 per cent of people said they are planning to vote Labour later this week, compared to 32 per cent who said that was their planned vote at the start of the election campaign.

The proportion of respondents backing the Tories is at 24 per cent, compared to 30 per cent backing the party at the start of the campaign.

A similar survey at the start of May found 39 per cent of respondents in the region said they were planning to vote Tory on June 8 compared to the 35 per cent who said they voted for the party in 2015, while the Labour vote was at 34 per cent, up from the 33 per cent who said they had voted for the party in 2015.

Other parties have seen their vote share squeezed by the contest between Labour and Conservatives – the Lib Dem vote was four per cent, compared to five per cent saying they supported the party at the start of the campaign, UKIP was three per cent, down from four per cent, and the Greens were on two per cent, down from three per cent.

Seven in 10 of people who planned to vote Conservative at the start of the campaign are still backing the party (71 per cent), but 14 per cent have switched to Labour, and 10 per cent say they are no longer sure who they will vote for.

Labour on the other hand seem to be picking up support from all sides. While 91 per cent of those who planned to vote Labour at the start of the campaign are sticking with their party, 40 per cent of people who previously planned to vote Lib Dem said they have switched to Labour, as have 29 per cent of those who had been planning to vote Green, and 16 per cent of those previously backing UKIP.

Three in 10 of respondents who said they were not sure what their vote would be at the start of the campaign are now behind Labour, 27 per cent, compared to four per cent who have decided to vote Conservative, although 59 per cent still have not made up their minds.

Labour's potentially improving prospects may be down in part to Jeremy Corbyn's performance; sixty per cent of respondents in the region think he's had the best general election campaign.

While 91per cent of those planning to vote Labour think Corbyn has been having the best campaign, so do 53 per cent of Lib Dem voters and 33 per cent of Green voters, for both a bigger proportion than think the leader of the respective party they are backing is doing best.

Of those planning to vote Conservative, 73 per cent think Theresa May has had the best campaign, while a fifth, 21 per cent, think Jeremy Corbyn's has been better.

Missing the leaders' debate on BBC1 last week may not have helped the perception of Mrs May's performance, as 58 per cent of respondents said it was the wrong decision, including 87 per cent of those planning to vote Labour, 82 per cent of those backing the Lib Dems and even 18 per cent of Tory voters, although 61 per cent of this group think she was right to skip the debate.

However, the survey suggests the debates had only a limited impact on how people are planning to vote, with just nine per cent of respondents saying it had caused them to change their vote.

People now planning to vote UKIP were the most likely to say they had changed their vote as a result of the debates, 26 per cent.

Labour voters were the most likely to feel more fired up as a result of the debates, with 40 per cent saying they had made them even more determined to vote for their party, compared to 17 per cent of Conservative voters saying the same.

Most respondents said the party they were voting for (64 per cent) was most important, rather than the party leader, 24 per cent, or the local candidate, 12 per cent.

Party was particularly important for those planning to vote Labour – 69 per cent put it top compared to 58 per cent of those planning to vote Conservative. Theresa May's campaign, which has more strongly focused on her, seems to have had an impact, with 34 per cent of those planning to vote Tory saying the leader of the party was the most important thing to them.

Social care and the NHS are the issues most likely to determine how a third of respondents are planning to vote, 33 per cent, including 54 per cent of those planning to vote Labour, followed by Brexit, the key issue for 23 per cent of respondents, including 50 per cent of Conservative voters, 35 per cent of Lib Dem voters, and 39 per cent of UKIP voters.

Half of respondents in the region (53 per cent) said they have had candidate's leaflets sent in the post, and 10 per cent said they has seen a candidate or campaigner locally and nine per cent said a campaigner had knocked on their door. However, a third, 36per cent, said they have seen candidates, campaigners or received leaflets.