Labour has lost Tameside council in Angela Rayner’s constituency to no overall control. The ruling party was defending 17 seats in Greater Manchester and lost 16 of them to Reform.
Sir Keir Starmer’s party has lost control of seven other authorities, including Wandsworth, Westminster and Hartlepool. Ms Rayner is among those who could potentially make a move to oust the Prime Minister following disastrous local election results. It came as Nigel Farage claimed Reform UK was on course to win the next general election.
A jubilant Mr Farage heralded a “historic change in British politics”, telling reporters “there is no more Left-Right” as his outfit was “scoring stunning percentages in traditional old Labour areas”.
The Reform leader compared the substantial gains to clearing Becher’s Brook, a famously difficult jump in the Grand National.
He said: “If we cleared Becher’s Brook and landed well, we go on to win the Grand National.
“What is very clear to me is that our voters will stick with us now all the way through.”
The Greens and Liberal Democrats have also made gains in English councils overnight.
This all comes before results stream in from Senedd elections in Wales and Scottish Holyrood votes.
In Wales, Labour is expected to lose the national vote for the first time in more than a century while the SNP appears likely to remain the largest party in Scotland after 19 years in power.