According to a report in The Guardian, Lord Levy, chief Labour fundraiser, is to warn donors of what is described as an intense campaign. It says that he plans to build on the estimated 拢10m to 拢12m already raised.
The Conservative Party has been running a widespread poster campaign using the strapline "Are you thinking what we're thinking?", and has targeted marginal Labour constituencies.
Labour is worried about the pressure the Tories are piling on, with the immigration issue giving it the most trouble in opinion polls. The Tory leader Michael Howard accused Tony Blair of "pussy-footing" around the issue at the weekend.
However, the Daily Mirror reported this morning that Labour had opened a 5% lead in the polls, putting it on course for a 100-seat majority.
The poll revealed that 60% of people think that the number of asylum seekers who have come to the UK in the last two years has doubled, when in reality the figure has fallen -- but the poll shows just 4% of people know this.
During the last General Election, held in 2001, Labour spent 拢5.049m on ads compared with the Tories' 拢4.479m, even though the Tories were trailing badly in the opinion polls. These figures were down dramatically on the 1997 figure when Labour spent an estimated 拢7.3m and the Tories 拢13.1m, reflecting the introduction of a 拢15m limit on campaign adspend.
Overall, during the 2001 campaign, the Tories spent more than Labour, at 拢12.02 to Labour's 拢11m. But with some believing that there is a real chance the Tories could win this year, both parties are likely to push spending to the upper limits.
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