Labour has come out top after the party conference season, narrowing the lead of the Conservatives in voter popularity by several percentage points, according to a poll published today.

The Tories slipped one point to 40% and the Government gained three to reach 30% in the first Populus poll to be carried out since the round of political conferences.

It is the smallest such gap since January and Labour's highest rating in the poll since April.

But the results are in sharp contrast to recent YouGov and ICM polls which showed the Tories enjoying a much larger lead after the conference season.

The Liberal Democrats saw no change in their rating of 18%, while popularity for other parties slid down two points to 12%.

Popularity for the Prime Minister continued to wane, with only 30% of those asked saying that Gordon Brown is the best person to lead Britain compared with 45% backing David Cameron.

Mr Cameron and Shadow Chancellor George Osbourne also fared better as a team in the popularity ratings, with 41% trusting them to tackle the troubled economy compared with just 28% for Mr Brown and Chancellor Alistair Darling.

And 57% of those questioned expect a Tory victory at the next election, with only 16% predicting Labour to win an overall majority.

Support for the Conservatives appeared to be strong among retired voters, with 49% backing the Tories.

The Populus poll questioned more than 1,500 voters over the weekend for a poll published in The Times today.

Mr Osbourne's speech urging greater austerity at the Conservative Party conference last week seems to have found favour with voters, with 43% saying a Tory government is more likely to make cuts with the best interests of ordinary people at heart.

But voters still think Labour will minimise public sector job losses by 49% compared with 33% who think the Tories will achieve this.