Conservatives keep poll lead over Labour

LONDON (Reuters) - The Conservatives have kept their lead over the Labour Party, putting them on course for a return to power in an election likely to take place next year, an opinion poll showed on Tuesday.

The ComRes poll in the Independent newspaper showed the Conservatives with 40 percent support, up two points from last month, while Labour was on 27 percent, a rise of four points. The Liberal Democrats had 18 percent support, down five points.

Prime Minister Gordon Brown must call an election by June 2010.

A deep recession, a scandal over politicians' expenses, Brown's unpopularity and voter fatigue with Labour after 12 years in power have damaged the ruling party's support.

A rapid economic recovery is widely seen as the only chance of salvation for Brown and Labour, which ousted the Conservatives from power in 1997.

The poll showed 67 percent agreed with Conservative leader David Cameron's comments during his party's annual conference earlier this month that the government had "grown too big" and needed to be scaled back.

The survey was conducted among 1,004 people from October 23-October25.

(Reporting by Jonathan Saul)