(Angus Reid Global Scan) - Voters are starting to gauge the prospects of Britain's three main parties in the next election to the House of Commons, according to a poll by Populus published in The Times. 37 per cent of respondents would vote for the governing Labour party under current chancellor of the exchequer Gordon Brown.

The Conservative party of David Cameron is a close second with 35 per cent, followed by the Liberal Democrats led by Menzies Campbell with 20 per cent. Nine per cent of respondents would support other parties.

Brown has been in charge of Britain's finances since 1997—the longest continuous tenure for any public servant in the position. He has been mentioned as a possible replacement for current Labour leader and prime minister Tony Blair, who has vowed to retire at the end of his current mandate in 2010.

Since December 2005, Cameron has been the leader of the Conservative party. The 39-year-old former education spokesman is the fourth person to command the opposition organization in the past eight years.

On Mar. 2, the Liberal Democrats announced that foreign affairs spokesman Menzies Campbell will be their new leader. A leadership ballot of party members was called in January after Charles Kennedy admitted to a drinking problem.

On Mar. 6, Labour member Peter Hain warned about a possible opposition partnership, saying, "This unholy alliance between Lib-Dems and Tories could be an even bigger threat by the time of the next election."

In May 2005, British voters renewed the House of Commons. The governing Labour party secured 356 seats, followed by the Conservatives with 197 and the Liberal Democrats with 62.

The next election to the House of Commons must be held on or before Jun. 3, 2010. Sitting prime ministers can dissolve Parliament and call an early ballot at their discretion.

Polling Data

If the choice at the next election is between Labour led by Gordon Brown, the Conservatives led by David Cameron and the Liberal Democrats led by Menzies Campbell, which party would you vote for—or would you vote for some other party?

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