Nigel Farage urges right to unite in Makerfield after poll claims Restore Britain would let Andy Burnham into No10

Nigel Farage has urged right-wing voters to unite behind Reform UK after a poll found Rupert Lowe's Restore Britain could split the vote in the Makerfield by-election.

Data from pollsters at Survation showed 43 per cent of voters in the seat would choose Andy Burnham, potentially putting him on a path to oust Sir Keir Starmer and take over as Prime Minister.

Reform UK, which announced "plucky plumber" Robert Kenyon as its candidate just days ago, trails by just three percentage points on 40 per cent.

But Mr Lowe's candidate Rebecca Shepherd is polling in third, on seven per cent.

If those voters turned to Reform, that single-digit figure would be enough - for now - to win Makerfield for Mr Farage's party.

With just over three weeks remaining until the crunch election, the Reform leader is now calling on the right to line up for a "two-horse race" and stop Mr Burnham's bid to return to Westminster - and his subsequent march to No10.

"Robert Kenyon is the only candidate who can stop Andy Burnham. This is a two-horse race - nobody else comes close," he said.

But Elon Musk, who publicly stopped backing Reform last year after earlier endorsing the party, could throw a spanner in the works.

On Sunday, Mr Musk, who could soon become the world's first trillionaire, shared a social media post from Mr Lowe about the looming by-election - and said simply: "Restore Britain."

The Great Yarmouth MP had said his party was "under brutal assault" by the establishment who "want us gone".

"They've already tried to put me in prison. It will all keep coming and coming. It is going to get a lot worse, the more support we gain. The establishment is getting very nasty with us. Good. It shows we are making progress," he wrote.

"Elon Musk backing Restore Britain sends a clear message that real change is possible and the establishment is losing control," he later added.

Mr Farage has now issued a warning to Mr Musk: That his intervention would play into Labour's hands.

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Mr Burnham would be "delighted" by his endorsement of Restore Britain as it could "split the right", the Reform leader said.

"Elon Musk has decided he will try to split the right of British politics as best he can," Mr Farage told The Telegraph.

"This is supporting a party that's one man with a social media account. Quite what he's trying to achieve, I have no idea."

Reform's economy spokesman Robert Jenrick, meanwhile, told GB News "the only way to get rid of Labour is to rally behind Nigel Farage" when confronted with the polling data.

The Survation study in Makerfield had a sample size of 504 respondents, of whom 369 said they were likely to vote.

It is the first survey of the constituency since the by-election was called, and the pollster cautioned it should be treated as an "indicative early look".

Elsewhere in its data, the Conservatives are polling on just two per cent.

But the Lib Dems and Greens look set to take in four and three per cent of the votes in Makerfield - with left-wing voters appearing to rally behind Mr Burnham.

On Friday, the Greater Manchester Mayor formally laid out his platform to return to the Commons for the first time in nine years.

He has framed his campaign as a means to oust the Prime Minister and "change Labour" for good.