I’m a Tory – here’s why I’m voting Labour in the local elections April 30, 2026 In a time of messy, multi-party politics, tactical voting is likely to define contests in next week’s local elections. Alys Denby is not prepared to let the Green Party take control of her bin collection I’m about to do something against which all my instincts recoil, something so shameful I hesitate to admit in this [...]
What to look out for in London’s local elections April 30, 2026 With more parties and more candidates than ever before, next week’s local elections across London are the most unpredictable for a generation, argues James Ford On 7 May, Londoners go to the polls to elect the councillors that will run the capital’s 32 borough councils. More than 1,800 council seats are up for election, alongside [...]
Rachel Reeves plots ‘growth push’ as Labour set for bruising elections April 27, 2026 Rachel Reeves is plotting another “growth push” as the Labour party prepares itself for a potentially bruising defeat in the local elections. The Chancellor is set to unveil a new push for fiscal discipline, a closer relationship with the EU and planning reforms in a bid to ease the nerves of the party. The forthcoming [...]
London local elections 2026: Who will win? April 23, 2026 Political turmoil in Westminster and voter anxiety across a range of issues could see the political map of London redrawn after the upcoming local elections. Felix Armstrong, Mauricio Alencar, Matt Kenyon, Samuel Norman, Saskia Koopman and Simon Hunt preview how residents in each of the capital’s 32 boroughs could vote on May 7. The Greens [...]
Tories brace for heavy losses as Badenoch outpolls rivals April 4, 2026 Five years ago, the Conservatives were polling at around 40 per cent, buoyed by the vaccine rollout and post-Brexit momentum, and went on to gain 235 seats in the 2021 local elections. But ahead of May’s vote, that position seems to have shifted. Political scientist Stephen Fisher has suggested the party could lose as many [...]
Plaid Cymru would bankrupt an independent Wales on day one March 26, 2026 The local elections will likely see Labour lose the grip it has held on Wales since the inception of the Senedd. If Plaid Cymru does indeed form the next government, the UK might usefully acclimatise them to what life would be like under independence, says Paul Ormerod The swathe of local elections which are due [...]
How sectarian is London’s politics? March 5, 2026 If the by-election in Gorton and Denton is a seismic event, then the aftershocks will be felt by Londoners in borough elections across the capital in May, writes James Ford By-elections are often exceptional, aberrant outliers from normal politics. The full attention of party campaign strategists and the national press are ruthlessly trained on a [...]
Keir Starmer U-turns on plans to cancel 30 local elections February 16, 2026 The government has shelved plans to postpone local elections in May for 30 councils in England. Communities secretary Steve Reed says the decision comes “in the light of recent legal advice”, and ahead of a planned High Court hearing that was set for Thursday. According to a letter from the Government Legal Department, shared by [...]
High Court to hear Reform’s challenge on cancelled council elections January 21, 2026 Reform UK’s legal challenge against the UK government over plans to delay local elections is set to go to a two-day trial next month. The case focuses on the government’s plan to allow 63 councils to postpone their local elections that were scheduled for May 2026. So far, more than a third of local authorities [...]
Reform UK: Kent local authority poised to hike council tax October 6, 2025 Reform UK-run Kent County Council is likely to raise council tax next year, with a cabinet member suggesting that a five per cent hike is on the cards. Diane Morton, the council lead for adult social care, told the Financial Times: “We’ve got more demand than ever before and it’s growing.” “We just want more [...]