ED Miliband's leadership has been called into question after a poll suggested it made four out of 10 people less likely to vote Labour.

The telephone poll of 1,000 adults by Comres showed 40 per cent of people said Mr Miliband's leadership made them less likely to vote Labour, six per cent said it made them more likely, while 53 per cent felt it made no difference.

The record of Gordon Brown's Government was also a barrier for Labour.

Some 38 per cent said it made them less likely to vote Labour, nine per cent said it made them more likely to do so while 52 per cent said it made no difference.

But 32 per cent of people said Labour proposals for government, such as freezing energy prices, made them more likely to support the party.

The poll placed Labour on 35 per cent, down a point, the Tories unchanged on 30 per cent, Ukip up two on 14 per cent and the Liberal Democrats down one point on eight per cent.