Polls give Lib Dems best ever start to election year

7.00.00am GMT Wed 9th Feb 2005

Analysis of opinion polls from January 2005 shows the Liberal Democrats scoring more highly than in any January of an election year since political polling began.

Looking at all published polls, the party's average poll rating (21.6%) in January 2005 was around eight points above the average Lib Dem rating in January 2001 (13.7%) and nine points above the party's average in January 1997 (12.4%).

By contrast, Labour are down from an average of 50.6% in 1997 and 48.7% in 2001 to just 37.1% and the Tories score an average of just 32.1%, exactly the same as in January 2001 and just 0.4% up on their 31.7% average in January 1997.

The poll gives a great boost to Chris Coleman, the Lib Dem prospective MP for the Forest of Dean. The Lib Dems won 29% of the vote in the Forest at the last County elections. Labour won 30% and the Tories won 32%. If the opinion poll rise is mirrored here in the Forest of Dean, Chris Coleman will be our next Member of Parliament.