Live updates: Follow the latest news on the UK general election
Most people in Britain want to cut immigration, according to new polling for The National which suggests Labour leader Keir Starmer will romp into Downing Street.
An exclusive Deltapoll survey shows 57 per cent want the number of immigrants “coming to the UK these days” to fall, with 13 per cent saying it should rise.
The majority includes 40 per cent who say the number should be “decreased a lot” and 17 per cent who want it “decreased a little”.
However, a Conservative push to make migration a key election issue has failed to revive the party's dire electoral prospects.
Our poll shows Labour heading for a landslide victory on July 4, with the Conservatives on the brink of a historic rout.
Labour gets 42 per cent support, with the Conservatives on 20 per cent. Such a margin would be unparalleled in postwar British history.
The ardently anti-immigration Reform Party – whose supporters are most likely to want a tougher border policy – sits on 17 per cent.
Prime Minister Rishi Sunak has dismal personal ratings, with 70 per cent saying he is doing his job badly and 26 per cent well.
Labour leader Keir Starmer performs better, with 47 per cent scoring him well and 44 per cent badly.
Migration debate
Mr Sunak used the final head-to-head TV debate of the election campaign to go on the attack over migration.
Scorning Labour’s plans to negotiate the return of illegal migrants, he asked whether Mr Starmer would “sit down with the ayatollahs” or “do a deal with the Taliban”.
Mr Starmer hit back on Thursday by saying Mr Sunak had “no answer” to the backlog of asylum seekers already being housed in Britain.
He said it would take “literally hundreds of years” to clear the backlog by deporting people to Rwanda under Mr Sunak’s signature pledge.
Reform party leader Nigel Farage meanwhile defended his use of the term “invasion” to describe illegal migration across the English Channel.
More than 50,000 migrants have arrived in the UK after crossing the Channel since Mr Sunak took power.
Legal migration is also a key issue, having added a net 745,000 people to the UK’s population in record annual figures published last year.
Mr Farage said mass migration had created a sense that “perhaps something about our culture is directly under threat”.
In the polling results, only 21 per cent are satisfied with the current level of immigration.
Among Conservatives, 72 per cent want to cut immigration and 54 per cent want it decreased a lot.
The figures rise among Reform supporters to 79 per cent wanting less immigration and 54 per cent much less.
While 48 per cent of Labour voters want immigration decreased, only 27 per cent want it down a lot.
Labour says it will form a new border security command as one of its first steps in office, using counterterror powers to tackle people smuggling.
The Conservatives say deportation flights to Rwanda would begin this summer if they win a fifth term.
Economic woes
The poll also finds there is dissatisfaction with Conservative economic policies after 14 years in office.
Only 31 per cent say the British economy is best off being run by Mr Sunak and Chancellor Jeremy Hunt.
Labour is better placed, with 47 per cent saying a Starmer government with Rachel Reeves as chancellor would be better for the economy.
The Deltapoll survey for The National also shows:
· A majority (54 per cent) support banning arms sales to Israel, while about 32 per cent say the war in Gaza will be important to their vote
· If there were a second referendum on EU membership, 46 per cent say they would vote to rejoin and 37 per cent to stay out
· The idea of making 18-year-olds do a year of military service is supported by 38 per cent and opposed by 50 per cent
· If Britain could vote in the US presidential election, 46 per cent would support Joe Biden and 24 per cent would side with Donald Trump.
The voting intention figures put Labour on course for a vast national swing only five years after it crashed to its worst defeat since 1935.
Under Britain’s first-past-the-post voting system, such a swing would typically produce a Labour majority of about 250 seats.
Deltapoll’s co-founder and director Joe Twyman said “all the indications” are that Labour will win the election and “by some distance”.
“The problems facing Keir Starmer, should he indeed become the UK’s next prime minister, remain substantial, however.
“While domestic issues around the cost of living, the NHS and immigration will feature prominently, big foreign policy questions will need to be addressed.”
Deltapoll interviewed 2,077 British adults online between June 24 and 26. The data has been weighted to be representative of the British adult population as a whole.
The years Ramadan fell in May
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THREE POSSIBLE REPLACEMENTS
Khalfan Mubarak
The Al Jazira playmaker has for some time been tipped for stardom within UAE football, with Quique Sanchez Flores, his former manager at Al Ahli, once labelling him a “genius”. He was only 17. Now 23, Mubarak has developed into a crafty supplier of chances, evidenced by his seven assists in six league matches this season. Still to display his class at international level, though.
Rayan Yaslam
The Al Ain attacking midfielder has become a regular starter for his club in the past 15 months. Yaslam, 23, is a tidy and intelligent player, technically proficient with an eye for opening up defences. Developed while alongside Abdulrahman in the Al Ain first-team and has progressed well since manager Zoran Mamic’s arrival. However, made his UAE debut only last December.
Ismail Matar
The Al Wahda forward is revered by teammates and a key contributor to the squad. At 35, his best days are behind him, but Matar is incredibly experienced and an example to his colleagues. His ability to cope with tournament football is a concern, though, despite Matar beginning the season well. Not a like-for-like replacement, although the system could be adjusted to suit.
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Volvo ES90 Specs
Engine: Electric single motor (96kW), twin motor (106kW) and twin motor performance (106kW)
Power: 333hp, 449hp, 680hp
Torque: 480Nm, 670Nm, 870Nm
On sale: Later in 2025 or early 2026, depending on region
Price: Exact regional pricing TBA
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TO A LAND UNKNOWN
Director: Mahdi Fleifel
Starring: Mahmoud Bakri, Aram Sabbah, Mohammad Alsurafa
Rating: 4.5/5
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GAC GS8 Specs
Engine: 2.0-litre 4cyl turbo
Power: 248hp at 5,200rpm
Torque: 400Nm at 1,750-4,000rpm
Transmission: 8-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 9.1L/100km
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh149,900
The specs
Engine: 4.0-litre, twin-turbocharged V8
Transmission: nine-speed automatic
Power: 630bhp
Torque: 900Nm
Price: Dh810,000
KILLING OF QASSEM SULEIMANI
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
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Living in...
This article is part of a guide on where to live in the UAE. Our reporters will profile some of the country’s most desirable districts, provide an estimate of rental prices and introduce you to some of the residents who call each area home.
Libya's Gold
UN Panel of Experts found regime secretly sold a fifth of the country's gold reserves.
The panel’s 2017 report followed a trail to West Africa where large sums of cash and gold were hidden by Abdullah Al Senussi, Qaddafi’s former intelligence chief, in 2011.
Cases filled with cash that was said to amount to $560m in 100 dollar notes, that was kept by a group of Libyans in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso.
A second stash was said to have been held in Accra, Ghana, inside boxes at the local offices of an international human rights organisation based in France.
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OPINIONS ON PALESTINE & ISRAEL
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
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RESULTS
6.30pm: Meydan Sprint Group 2 US$175,000 1,000m
Winner: Ertijaal, Jim Crowley (jockey), Ali Rashid Al Raihe (trainer)
7.05pm: Handicap $60,000 1,400m
Winner: Secret Ambition, Richard Mullen, Satish Seemar
7.40pm: Handicap $160,000 1,400m
Winner: Raven’s Corner, Richard Mullen, Satish Seemar
8.15pm: Dubai Millennium Stakes Group 3 $200,000 2,000m
Winner: Folkswood, William Buick, Charlie Appleby
8.50pm: Zabeel Mile Group 2 $250,000 1,600m
Winner: Janoobi, Jim Crowley, Mike de Kock
9.25pm: Handicap $125,000 1,600m
Winner: Capezzano, Mickael Barzalona, Salem bin Ghadayer
Mohammed bin Zayed Majlis
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The burning issue
The internal combustion engine is facing a watershed moment – major manufacturer Volvo is to stop producing petroleum-powered vehicles by 2021 and countries in Europe, including the UK, have vowed to ban their sale before 2040. The National takes a look at the story of one of the most successful technologies of the last 100 years and how it has impacted life in the UAE.
Read part four: an affection for classic cars lives on
Read part three: the age of the electric vehicle begins
Read part one: how cars came to the UAE
Company Profile:
Name: The Protein Bakeshop
Date of start: 2013
Founders: Rashi Chowdhary and Saad Umerani
Based: Dubai
Size, number of employees: 12
Funding/investors: $400,000 (2018)
RESULT
Wolves 1 (Traore 67')
Tottenham 2 (Moura 8', Vertonghen 90 1')
Man of the Match: Adama Traore (Wolves)
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Continental champions
Best Asian Player: Massaki Todokoro (Japan)
Best European Player: Adam Wardzinski (Poland)
Best North & Central American Player: DJ Jackson (United States)
Best African Player: Walter Dos Santos (Angola)
Best Oceanian Player: Lee Ting (Australia)
Best South American Player: Gabriel De Sousa (Brazil)
Best Asian Federation: Saudi Jiu-Jitsu Federation
Company Profile
Name: Thndr
Started: 2019
Co-founders: Ahmad Hammouda and Seif Amr
Sector: FinTech
Headquarters: Egypt
UAE base: Hub71, Abu Dhabi
Current number of staff: More than 150
Funds raised: $22 million
Zayed Sustainability Prize
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From Zero
Artist: Linkin Park
Label: Warner Records
Number of tracks: 11
Rating: 4/5
Racecard
6.35pm: The Madjani Stakes – Group 2 (PA) Dh97,500 (Dirt) 1,900m
7.10pm: Evidenza – Handicap (TB) Dh87,500 (D) 1,200m
7.45pm: The Longines Conquest – Maiden (TB) Dh82,500 (D) 2,000m
8.20: The Longines Elegant – Conditions (TB) Dh82,500 (D)
8.35pm: The Dubai Creek Mile – Listed (TB) Dh132,500 (D) 1,600m
9.30pm: Mirdif Stakes – Conditions (TB) Dh120,000 (D) 1,400m
10.05pm: The Longines Record – Handicap (TB) Dh87,500 (D) 1,900m
Indoor cricket in a nutshell
Indoor Cricket World Cup – Sep 16-20, Insportz, Dubai
16 Indoor cricket matches are 16 overs per side
8 There are eight players per team
9 There have been nine Indoor Cricket World Cups for men. Australia have won every one.
5 Five runs are deducted from the score when a wickets falls
4 Batsmen bat in pairs, facing four overs per partnership
Scoring In indoor cricket, runs are scored by way of both physical and bonus runs. Physical runs are scored by both batsmen completing a run from one crease to the other. Bonus runs are scored when the ball hits a net in different zones, but only when at least one physical run is score.
Zones
A Front net, behind the striker and wicketkeeper: 0 runs
B Side nets, between the striker and halfway down the pitch: 1 run
C Side nets between halfway and the bowlers end: 2 runs
D Back net: 4 runs on the bounce, 6 runs on the full
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