Labour Loses Over 1,000 Council Seats in UK Local Elections

Prime Minister Keir Starmer took responsibility on Friday for significant losses by the Labour Party in local elections, saying he would "not sugarcoat" the results. Labour lost close to 1,100 council seats across England with further defeats expected as about 5,000 seats were contested in total.

" Reform UK, led by Nigel Farage, gained more than 1,200 seats on municipal councils, drawing support from both the Conservative Party and Labour. By evening, the party had consolidated its position as the dominant force on the political right. Farage described the results as marking "a complete reshaping of British politics" and said Reform should now be treated as a national party.

The Green Party added more than 270 council seats and the Liberal Democrats gained close to 100. Results from Thursday's municipal elections in England and parliamentary votes in Scotland and Wales indicate a shift in which at least seven parties are competing for support across Britain.

Some votes were still being counted with additional results expected into Saturday morning.

Wales, where Labour had dominated politics since 1922, the party came in third in seats in the Welsh Parliament. Plaid Cymru was on track to win the largest number of seats, followed by Reform UK. Plaid Cymru secured 43 seats in the Senedd, Reform UK took 34, Labour won nine, the Conservatives seven, the Greens two and the Liberal Democrats one.

The left-wing Scottish National Party, which has led the Scottish Parliament for almost 20 years, faced its own contests with independence remaining a central campaign issue.

In the southeast London borough of Bexley, the Conservative Party retained control of the council with 29 seats while Reform UK and Labour each won seven. The area had been viewed as a key battleground after Reform UK gained control of the county council in neighboring Kent in last year's local elections.

Conservative Party leader Kemi Badenoch visited Bexley Village last week to campaign for local candidates. Voters in Bexley expressed varied views on the choices available. Duncan Blatch, 62, who had never previously worked on local campaigns, spent recent weeks canvassing for the Conservatives after decades of voting for the party.

" Starmer's tenure as prime minister has included policy changes on taxes, welfare, immigration and digital IDs along with several scandals. Public opinion surveys had predicted a difficult result for Labour for months. Reform UK holds just eight seats in the British Parliament but has seen its support increase over the past two years.

A general election does not have to be held until 2029.