Six out of 10 say Labour has failed to deliver

Six out of 10 people think Labour has failed to deliver on its promises despite rising taxes, a poll revealed today.

The greatest dissatisfaction was among the middle classes - the group which has done most to finance Labour's spending.

And 64 per cent of voters expect their taxes to go up if Labour wins a third term, according to the YouGov poll for The Economist magazine.

Voters were also disappointed with Gordon Brown's stewardship of the economy, with 59 per cent saying they had not prospered under Labour. The Economist said Labour's tax policies had created a "grumpy middle class", with more and more people falling into the top-rate bracket.

It said that if the Chancellor continues with his profligacy, the number of higher-rate taxpayers will reach 4.4 million by 2009.

The findings show the scale of Tony Blair's task to regain the trust of the middle classes at next week's Labour conference.

Mr Blair hopes to use the Brighton gathering to rally the party round a common agenda for a third Labour term, and it could be the last conference before a general election.

This will mean he has to convince voters and supporters they can trust his government to deliver on its promises. But even loyal Labour MPs admit the record has been mixed.

Unease within the party about Iraq is mirrored by fears Labour has failed to deliver on key policy issues.

Critics say that the electorate is more likely to judge the party for its failures on welfare reform, transport and asylum, rather than concrete achievements on employment and the economy.

Mitcham and Morden MP Siobhain McDonagh defended Labour's

achievements, saying: "We have met our promises or are on the way to meeting them - but sometimes people think we promised more than we did."