"Reform UK has made early gains in local elections with wins in Labour heartlands. United Kingdom Prime Minister Keir Starmer's Labour Party is bracing for heavy defeats in local elections, with Reform UK poised to make gains across the country, according to early results. Labour's woes were already evident as the country woke up on Friday morning, with the governing party losing more than 258 seats and Nigel Farage's populist party Reform UK gaining 382 seats by 9am local time (06:00 GMT)."
"Some of Labour's biggest losses have been in the so-called 'Red Wall' strongholds, a belt of former industrial areas spanning the north of England that have traditionally voted for the centre-left party, where many of Starmer's ministers hold seats. Reform UK has made early gains in Greater Manchester and the Liverpool City Region, with more results to come in. In Wigan and Leigh, two former mining towns in North West England, Reform UK won 24 of 25 seats, and in nearby Tameside, it managed to end 47 years of Labour dominance of the region's council."
"In response to the early results, Starmer said he would take responsibility for the outcome but indicated that he would not step down. Days like this don't weaken my resolve to deliver the change that I promised, Starmer was quoted by GB News as saying. The results are tough, they are very tough, and there's no sugarcoating it, he said during a speech in West London on Friday morning. We have lost brilliant Labour representatives across the country, these are people who put so much into their communities, so much into our party, he added. And that hurts, and it should hurt, and I take responsibility."
Reform UK made early gains in local elections, including wins in Labour heartlands. Labour faced heavy losses, with the governing party losing more than 258 seats while Reform UK gained 382 seats by 9am local time. The results were seen as a test of Keir Starmer’s leadership, with Labour trailing Reform UK in opinion polls. Starmer said he would take responsibility for the outcome but would not step down, describing the losses as very tough and painful. Major losses occurred in Red Wall strongholds across northern England. Reform UK gained in Greater Manchester and the Liverpool City Region, winning 24 of 25 seats in Wigan and Leigh and ending 47 years of Labour dominance in Tameside. Reform UK also gained its first council in Newcastle-under-Lyme after a switch from the Conservatives.
Read at www.aljazeera.com
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