As the Tories gather in Bournemouth for their annual conference a new poll has shown the scale of the task facing Michael Howard.

At the end of his first year in charge, the Conservatives have sunk to 28 per cent support, according to the Populus survey for the Times.

The Tories trail Labour by seven points and are only three per cent ahead of the Liberal Democrats.

The survey means that the party is in a worse position in the polls than a year ago, a month before Iain Duncan Smith was forced out as leader.

Howard hopes a renewed focus on tax will shore up his vote, with the conference set to put cuts at the heart of the Conservative campaign.

But shadow chancellor Oliver Letwin will hold back from making specific promises.

A YouGov poll for the Telegraph suggests that the Tories should focus on immigration and tax.

Some 47 per cent of floating voters questioned said that curbing immigration should be a priority, while 37 per cent wanted a "firm and unambiguous" commitment to cut taxes.

Meanwhile former frontbencher John Bercow has called for an end to "Punch and Judy" politics and a new Tory focus on policies.

The leading moderniser, who was dismissed as international development spokesman by Howard last month, told GMTV that he hoped the party conference could be "sensible, constructive and purposeful... from the leader downwards".

The Mirror leads with a story that Tory donor Peter Stringfellow told a crowd of young Conservatives at his London club: "Die, Tony, die" hours after the prime minister had treatment for an irregular heartbeat.

His comments were reportedly greeted with cheers and applause.