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The Conservatives are on track for their worst local election results ever – as counting continues.
In a strong night for Labour, the party has taken control of a string of Leave-voting councils and won the Blackpool South by-election.
It’s a bleaker outlook for the Tories, who in some areas have been pushed into third place by Reform UK.
Follow live: Keir Starmer hails ‘seismic’ Blackpool South by-election win
As the count continues, here’s what you need to know about where the major parties stand.
Labour
With a third of council results in at first light on Friday, “what is clear is Labour is on the march“, according to Sky News’ political correspondent Tamara Cohen.
Labour won the Blackpool South by-election. Labour candidate Chris Webb will become the area’s new MP, taking over from former Conservative member Scott Benton.
While the result had been largely expected, Sir Keir Starmer hailed Labour’s 58.9% vote share as a “seismic” victory and called it the “most important” result of Thursday’s elections.
Sky News’ chief political correspondent Jon Craig said that assessment was right: “After all, this was a parliamentary election, not the pavements and potholes of town hall elections, and produced a damning verdict on Rishi Sunak and his government.”
Labour won Rushmoor in Hampshire from the Conservatives for the first time and also gained Redditch from the Tories.
In a blow to Labour, it lost Oldham to no overall control.
Hartlepool and Thurrock were both gained by Labour from no overall control.
Labour held on to Sunderland Council and kept control of South Tyneside, Chorley and Newcastle.
The party replaced the Tories as the largest party on Peterborough Council which, while remaining under no overall control, saw the Conservatives lose 13 of the 16 seats they were defending.
Labour lost seats in some of its more traditional areas where there is a high Muslim population, such as Newcastle, with critics putting the failures down to the party’s…
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