The British National Party is on course to make significant gains in the local elections in England

George Jones:

It shows that seven per cent of voters are ready to back the far-Right party and that 24 per cent have considered voting BNP in the past or are thinking of doing so now.

In the eyes of almost three-quarters of potential BNP supporters, Britain "almost seems like a foreign country".

The poll underlines the recent warning from Margaret Hodge, the employment minister, that white working-class families felt so neglected by the Government and angered by immigration that they were deserting Labour and flocking to the BNP.

Mrs Hodge told The Sunday Telegraph that eight out of 10 white people in her east London constituency of Barking were threatening to vote for the BNP on May 4.

The surge in support for the BNP - which displaced the National Front as Britain's main far-Right party in 1982 - could damage the Conservatives in the local elections, which will be David Cameron's first electoral test since becoming Tory leader.

The poll suggests that the BNP draws its support more from the Conservatives than from Labour - and is gaining ground at the expense of the Liberal Democrats and UK Independence Party.

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