Local election results latest
Though headlines will be made by the number of council seats gained and lost, perhaps the greatest political significance is in the councils controlled.
Currently 146 of the 166 councils, nearly 90 per cent, have declared their results. However a number of key Metropolitan Councils, including Birmingham, Leeds and Cardiff are yet to declare.
The Conservatives are perhaps the big winners in these local elections, having held control of all of their existing councils and made 11 gains.
This leaves the Tories in overall control of 44 councils, to the Labour Party’s 37.
The majority of the councils gained come from those previously under no overall control. These are: Brentwood, Rossendale, Swindon, Worthing and Trafford.
Trafford is of particular significance to the Conservatives because as a major Metropolitan Council they will take it as a sign they are regaining a hold in the cities.
In a close fight they also took Eastbourne from the Liberal Democrats and Tamworth from Labour.
The Labour Party has seen an assault on a number of its strongholder, and has lost control of 13 councils.
Labour has lost over 370 seats, and the Conservatives gained over 200.
The most spectacular loss was in Newcastle which went to the Liberal Democrat’s after being under Labour control since 1973.
Tamworth, under Labour control since 1990, was also lost to the Conservatives.
The other lost councils in Burnley, Hastings, Ipswich, Oxford, St Helens and Bassetlaw are now under no overall control.
In a glimmer of comfort they gained control of Stoke on Trent and held onto heartland seats in Gateshead, Manchester and Sheffield.
Despite the losses they still retain the largest number of seats in local government, 1951 to the Conservative Party’s 1293.
The Liberal Democrats are hailing their results as an electoral breakthrough as eight councils are now under their control.
They also returned 1029 councillors.
However they lost control of three previously controlled councils in Cheltenham, Norwich, Eastbourne.
