British polls boost Labour`s hopes

A last-minute rally in support for British Prime Minister Gordon Brown's embattled
Labour government has given it hope of clinging to power in Thursday's general
election.
As Mr Brown, Conservative leader David Cameron and Liberal Democrats leader Nick
Clegg staged a frantic push to woo undecided voters in the final 24 hours of the
campaign, opinion polls suggested Labour could be returned for an historic fourth
term.
However reports also suggested the Tories might be able to form a majority
government with the support of a handful of Northern Ireland MPs.
Polls published on Wednesday continued the trend seen throughout the campaign - that
Britons will wake up to a hung parliament on Friday with none of the major parties
securing the 326 parliamentary seats they need for a majority government.
While the Tories remained in the lead in terms of the popular vote, the complexities
of Britain's first-past-the-post voting system mean Labour could still win the most
seats after clawing back support from Lib-Dem backers.
An average of the five major polling organisations by Sky News found support for the
Tories at 35 per cent, with Labour on 29 per cent and Lib-Dems on 26 per cent.
Such a result would mean Labour securing 270 seats, just one more than the Tories on
269, Lib-Dems with 79 and minor parties 32.
A YouGov poll for The Sun had support for the Tories unchanged at 35 per cent, with
Labour up two points to 30 per cent and the Lib-Dems down four points at 24 per
cent.
That would hand 285 seats to Labour, 261 to the Tories, 71 to the Lib-Dems and 33 to
other parties.
However a Comres poll for ITV and The Independent found the Tories could end up with
the most seats - 287 with 37 per cent of voters backing them compared to 257 for
Labour (29 per cent) and 75 for the Lib-Dems (26 per cent).
The same poll found that almost one in four people could still change their mind
about how they will vote.
In the event of a hung parliament, Whitehall rules dictate that Mr Brown as the
incumbent would be given the first chance to form a government.
This would probably involve trying to secure a deal with the Lib-Dems.
However, there is a chance the Tories could seize power if up to 10 Northern Ireland
MPs agree to back a Cameron government.
The Daily Telegraph newspaper said the Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) was willing
to enter a formal coalition with the Tories if they fail to win a majority.
With the race the tightest seen in Britain for decades, Mr Cameron pledged to go
"all out" to secure a convincing win.
"I'm not going to speculate on what the result might be," he told GMTV.
"If there's a hung parliament, we will behave responsibly. People should be in no
doubt about that."
Home Secretary Alan Johnson said he believed Labour could hold on to power.
"I'm absolutely convinced we can come through tomorrow with a majority and we can
continue the work we have been doing for the last 13 years," he told the BBC.
Mr Cameron and Mr Brown campaigned well into the night on Tuesday, visiting
shiftworkers around the country.
Addressing supporters in Manchester, Mr Brown urged people to "stick with me",
saying the Tories were "too big a risk" to Britain's recovery from recession.
Earlier, a rogue Labour candidate sought to embarrass Mr Brown by branding him
Britain's "worst prime minister".