Tim Farron will lead last-ditch Lib Dem drive in Stoke to win over pro-EU Labour voters

Tim Farron is planning to personally lead a last-ditch Liberal Democrat campaign push in the Stoke-on-Trent Central by-election in a bid to win over pro-EU Labour voters, IBTimes UK has learnt.

A Liberal Democrat source revealed the leader will visit the Staffordshire seat again on 20 February, just days before the crunch vote on 23 February.

Ukip are hoping that Farron and his party can eat into Labour's 5,000-strong majority by attracting Remain voters, while Paul Nuttall targets the 69% of Stoke residents who backed a Brexit at the EU referendum.

News of Farron's plan comes after reports that Labour was hoping to quietly collaborate with the Liberal Democrats and the Greens in Stoke in a bid to stop Nuttall, Nigel Farage's successor, being elected to the House of Commons.

"A senior figure in the Labour leader's office has asked a go-between what it would take to persuade the Lib Dems and Greens to dial down their campaigns," The Guardian reported.

Labour have played down the claims and Farron has ruled out a so called "progressive alliance" between the parties.

Liberal Democrat MP Norman Lamb, a former care minister, visited the seat on Thursday. "All we can do is focus on our own campaign, which is what we are doing," a Liberal Democrat source told IBTimes UK.

"The Labour Party aren't going to stand up for jobs in Europe, they voted with the government for Brexit.

"Who are the progressive people? I wouldn't call Jeremy Corbyn progressive, he seems to be pushing us towards a harder Brexit by voting with the government."

But Labour's candidate Gareth Snell is set to receive a campaign boost this weekend as pro-Corbyn pressure group Momentum plans to send 100 activists to the constituency.

The organisation has launched the Momentum Carpool website to link up activists with others from their local area who are travelling to campaign in both Stoke and Copeland, where a by-election will be held on 23 February.

"Hundreds of members have already volunteered to join the by-election campaigns, and almost 1,000 people have joined the 'Carpool to Copeland' and 'Carpool to Stoke' online groups to offer each other car shares and support each other to join the campaigning weekends," a Momentum source told IBTimes UK.

The Stoke-on-Trent Central by-election was triggered after Tristram Hunt, a Corbyn critic, quit the House of Commons in January to become the director of London's Victoria and Albert Museum.

Hunt won more than 39% of the vote at the 2015 general election, while Ukip secured 22.7%, the Conservatives attracted 22.5% and the Liberal Democrats saw 4.2% of the vote.