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       Tories lose Wandsworth as Boris Johnson faces backlash from own councillors

       Sinn Fein is set for a historic win in Northern Ireland as voting was set to resume in the Assembly election.

       The republican party had received the most first-preference votes as of Friday night, after voters went to the polls the day before.

       As of Saturday morning in England, Tories had recorded a loss of nearly 500 seats in local elections as of Saturday morning and a string of flagship councils, including the London boroughs of Wandsworth and Westminster.

       Tory MPs have told Boris Johnson he has lost the public’s trust and that momentum behind a challenge to his leadership is now “unstoppable”.

       Mr Johnson admitted the Tories had experienced a “tough night” in London and the south but insisted that the party had made “quite remarkable gains” elsewhere in the country.

       Meanwhile while Labour failed to make a breakthrough in its former ‘Red Wall’ heartland following Thursday’s elections.

       Recommended Local elections 2022: Key results so far If Starmer gets a fine for Beergate, he should resign – and so should the PM. But what happens then? Boris Johnson told tide towards leadership challenge ‘unstoppable’ after loss of flagship seats in elections Tears, tea and a seat won by drawing lots: How Tories took key red wall council

       Key points Sinn Fein looks set for best ever result Tory losses approach 500 seats Key results so far during the local elections vote count Labour secure historic wins in Westminster, Wandsworth and Barnet Conservatives could lose more than 200 council seats - poll suggests

       Show latest update 1651916917 Labour says ‘remarkable results’ in London

       Wes Streeting also said the local elections had shown “encouraging signs” of where Labour is rebuilding support.

       “We saw some absolutely remarkable results here in London,” he told BBC Breakfast.

       “I didn’t think I’d be speaking to you from Labour-led Westminster - that wasn’t within the boundaries of our expectations, but it’s not just the results in London.”

       PA

       Zoe Tidman 7 May 2022 10:48

       1651915787 Labour not ‘entertaining’ prospect of Sir Keir Starmer’s resignation

       Labour frontbencher Wes Streeting has said he would not “entertain” the prospect of Sir Keir resigning over alleged lockdown rule-breaking in Durham last April.

       Watch the shadow health secretary make the comments here:

       Zoe Tidman 7 May 2022 10:29

       1651914037 UK resettlement scheme for Afghans

       Moving away from election news for a moment, a former senior prosecutor being hunted by the Taliban says he lives in fear for his life because the UK’s resettlement scheme is failing to support Afghans at exceptional risk.

       Holly Bancroft has more:

       Prosecutor who put the Taliban behind bars in fear for his life Former director of prosecution ‘terrified’ in immigration limbo in Pakistan

       Zoe Tidman 7 May 2022 10:00

       1651913077 Tories ‘have to analyse where they lost seats'

       Nadhim Zahawi says the Conservatives “have to analyse” where it lost seats in the local election:

       Zoe Tidman 7 May 2022 09:44

       1651912269 Tories lost nearly 500 seats as of morning

       Boris Johnson remains an electoral asset to the Conservatives, a cabinet minister has insisted, despite Tory losses in local elections across Great Britain.

       As of Saturday morning, with only a couple of counts to go in England, the Tories had lost almost 500 council seats – including 341 in England, 63 in Scotland, and 86 in Wales.

       Adam Forrest reports:

       Boris Johnson ‘still an asset’, says minister as Tories lose nearly 500 seats Leadership issue must be ‘brought to a head’ soon, say rebel MPs as party hammered in south

       Zoe Tidman 7 May 2022 09:31

       1651911757 Lib Dems seeing ‘revival in rural areas’, party says

       The Liberal Democrat deputy leader says the party is “rebuilding” and seeing a “revival in rural areas” following the election results.

       See here:

       Zoe Tidman 7 May 2022 09:22

       1651909957 Labour ‘regained trust of Britons’, Welsh secretary says

       The Labour Party is ready for government, the shadow secretary of state for Wales has said.

       Jo Stevens told Times Radio: “What the results this week have shown is that we have regained the trust of the British public.

       “For example, taking control of Barnet Council in London, which has a substantial Jewish population, demonstrates both to our party and to the country at large that Labour has changed under the leadership of Keir Starmer in the last two years and that we are ready for government. Taking control of Barnet Council is an obvious example.

       “We will continue to try to prove to the British public that the Labour Party is a party that is ready for government.”

       PA

       Zoe Tidman 7 May 2022 08:52

       1651908930 SNP on Starmer ‘beergate’

       Ian Blackford, the SNP Westminster leader, has refused to say if Sir Keir Starmer should resign as Labour leader if he is found to have broken lockdown rules over “beergate”.

       “There has to be sanctions for people who break the law, but we’re not talking about that yet - let’s wait and see what happens with that investigation,” he told BBC Breakfast.

       Zoe Tidman 7 May 2022 08:35

       1651908126 ‘We must do better,’ education secretary says

       Nadhim Zahawi also spoke about Tory election losses in the same interview, saying there are issues to address both locally and nationally.

       “We will listen to those. We won’t be complacent,” the education secretary said.

       “We will listen to what people are telling us. And we must do better.”

       Zoe Tidman 7 May 2022 08:22

       1651907098 Northern Ireland ‘very much part of United Kingdom family’, minister says

       With republicans Sinn Fein the largest percentage of first-preference votes so far, the UK government could face an even greater constitutional headache in its relations with Northern Ireland in the coming months.

       Nadhim Zahawi, a Cabinet minister, has discussed the Northern Ireland Protocol this morning in light of this.

       “The important thing is to try and make sure we work with the parties in Northern Ireland, but also with the European Commission to make sure that we leave no stone unturned to try and make it work,” he told Sky News.

       “We need to make sure that all our options are available to us because - ultimately - the thing to remember is Northern Ireland is very much part of the family that is the United Kingdom.”

       Zoe Tidman 7 May 2022 08:04

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