A significant gain in the Coalition’s primary vote and a small slip in support for Labor have narrowed the gap from the result one month ago, when the government lagged by 47 per cent to 53 per cent. With Mr Shorten campaigning strongly on health funding in the key byelection seats of Braddon in Tasmania and Longman in Queensland, the new poll finds 48 per cent of voters believe Labor is best to manage health compared with 41 per cent for the Coalition. “There is only one way to stop cuts to hospitals, there is only one way to stop cuts to schools and to TAFE – it is to vote Labor in the upcoming Longman byelection,” Mr Shorten told supporters in the Queensland town of Caboolture on Sunday. But the new poll suggests Mr Turnbull has narrowed the gap on health policy after unveiling a $30 billion spending plan for the states earlier this year and insisting the government will support Medicare.

Loading Labor held a stronger position on health two years ago, leading by 50 to 35 per cent, just before Mr Shorten warned against “privatising Medicare” in a campaign that took the Coalition to the brink of defeat at the general election. On education, 49 per cent of voters believe Labor is the better choice to handle the issue while 42 per cent name the Coalition in the latest survey. This is also a narrower gap than the result of 51 to 37 per cent in Labor’s favour two years ago, as Mr Turnbull promises billions of dollars in school funding and outlines a “Gonski 2.0” plan to improve school performance. The Coalition has retained its lead over Labor on economic management, preferred by 60 per cent of voters compared with 33 per cent, but Labor has improved its standing since the result of 58 to 29 per cent in the government’s favour two years ago.

The shift has been more significant on the handling of asylum seeker policy, where the government has accused Mr Shorten of being under pressure from the Left to soften his stance on boat turnbacks. The Coalition remains the preferred party to manage the issue but with a shrinking lead over Labor, 45 per cent to 41 per cent, compared with the result two years ago when it led by 47 to 32 per cent. On the environment, a key issue ahead of an August 10 decision on the government’s National Energy Guarantee, Labor is preferred by 49 per cent of voters compared with 35 per cent for the Coalition, a slight narrowing over two years.

Mr Turnbull campaigned in Caboolture on Saturday with a claim that Labor could not be trusted on asylum seekers and a warning against Mr Shorten’s policy to block some personal and company tax cuts while also raising tax revenue from changes to dividend imputation. “What does Bill Shorten stand for? I tell you what. He stands for higher taxes. Higher taxes on individuals and families, higher taxes on businesses, higher taxes on retirees,” Mr Turnbull said. The result in two-party terms, with the government lagging Labor by 49 to 51 per cent, is based on preference flows at the last election. When respondents were asked how they would allocate their preferences, the result in two-party terms showed Labor and the Coalition in a dead heat at 50 per cent each, a return to the same result in a Fairfax/Ipsos survey in April.

Mr Turnbull has increased his support among voters as preferred prime minister from 51 to 57 per cent over the past month, while Mr Shorten saw his support slip from 33 to 30 per cent when voters were asked who they prefer as leader. In another sign of Mr Turnbull's improved standing on personal measures, the proportion of voters who approved of his performance rose from 50 to 55 per cent over the past month while those who disapproved fell from 44 to 38 per cent. This means Mr Turnbull’s net approval rating – the difference between those who approve and disapprove of his performance – rose to 17 percentage points, the strongest result since the previous election. Mr Shorten’s approval slipped from 40 to 38 per cent and his disapproval rating worsened marginally from 53 to 54 per cent. As a result, the Opposition Leader’s net approval rating slipped from minus 13 to minus 16 percentage points.

Malcolm Turnbull with LNP candidate for Longman Trevor Ruthenberg in Caboolture on Saturday. Credit:AAP At 39 per cent, the Coalition’s primary vote is 3 percentage points below its result at the previous election but is a significant improvement from the poll one month ago, when it had a primary vote of 35 per cent. Labor’s primary vote of 34 per cent is down from 35 per cent in the previous Fairfax/Ipsos poll six weeks ago and compares to a result of 35 per cent at the last election. Loading There was no change in the Greens primary vote, which was 12 per cent in the latest poll.