COUNCIL BY-ELECTIONS 17.07.25

Nine council seats were up for grabs on Thursday, with action taking place from east to west.

Labour were on the defence in two seats, losing one and holding the other.  In Basildon they lost to Reform who came from nowhere to win fairly comfortably, taking votes from all the other parties.  Labour held in Neath Port Talbot, despite a significant dip in their vote share.  Labour's vote share was down in all nine seats.

The Tories had a mixed week, losing two seats to Reform and gaining two elsewhere, including a Reform defence...

Reform had been defending their third seat in as many weeks, following several resignations within just days or weeks of being elected in May.  They have now lost all three, primarily because the electorate doesn't appreciate being asked to vote twice in a matter of months.  They tumbled to third place in Staffordshire, where the Tories sailed into first for an easy win.

NOTE:  The Denbighshire hold for the Conservatives was previously a multi-seat contest in which the Green Party won the first seat and the Tories second.

St Martin's, Basildon Borough Council

Ref: 1,057 (44.6%) New

Lab: 833 (35.1%) -3.2%

Con: 320 (13.5%) -7.1%

Grn: 82 (3.4%) -8.9%

LDm: 39 (1.6%) -7.8%

TUS: 26 (1.1%) -6.3%

SDP: 13 (0.5%) New

Ref GAIN from Lab

Maypole & Leyton Cross, Dartford Borough Council

Ref: 303 (53.7%) New

Con: 158 (28.0%) -40.7%

Lab: 71 (12.6%) -18.7%

Grn: 32 (5.7%) New

Ref GAIN from Con

Stone House, Dartford Borough Council

Ref: 475 (45.2%) New

Lab: 299 (28.4%) -12.8%

Con: 190 (18.1%) -31.4%

Grn: 87 (8.3%) -1.0%

Ref GAIN from Con

Prestatyn Central, Denbighshire County Council

Con: 230 (21.7%) -1.8%

Ind: 223 (21.1%) New

Ref: 195 (18.4%) New

Pld: 152 (14.3%) New

Grn: 144 (13.6%) -35.4%

Lab: 95 (9.0%) -14.5%

LDm: 19 (1.8%) New

Con HOLD

Market Harborough-Logan, Harborough District Council

Con: 410 (31.3%) +4.1%

LDm: 355 (27.1%) -19.8%

Grn: 290 (22.2%) +14.5%

Ref: 190 (14.1%) New

Lab: 44 (3.4%) -9.1%

Ind: 10 (0.7%) -4.8%

CPB: 9 (0.6%) New

Con GAIN from LDm

Sefton Park, Liverpool City Council

Grn: 468 (49.8%) -7.0%

Lab: 211 (22.4%) -11.1%

LDm: 193 (20.5%) +15.4%

Ref: 54 (5.7%) New

Con: 14 (1.5%) -3.0%

Grn HOLD

Baglan, Neath Port Talbot County Borough Council

Lab: 708 (37.5%) -16.8%

Ind: 532 (28.2%) New

Ref: 447 (23.7%) New

Pld: 149 (7.9%) New

Con: 19 (1.0%) -14.1%

Grn: 18 (1.0%) New

LDm: 13 (0.7%) New

Lab HOLD

Pontypridd Town, Rhondda Cynon Taf County Borough Council

Pld: 540 (51.6%) -2.2%

Ref: 253 (24.2%) New

Lab: 203 (19.4%) -16.8%

Con: 27 (2.6%) -7.3%

Grn: 23 (2.2%) New

Pld HOLD

Eccleshall & Gnosall, Staffordshire County Council

Con: 1,689 (44.4%) +10.1%

Grn: 1,037 (27.3%) +8.2%

Ref: 938 (24.7%) -10.3%

Lab: 140 (3.7%) -3.9%

Con GAIN from Ref

Abbreviations

Ref = Reform UK

Lab = Labour

Con = Conservative

Grn = Green

LDm = Liberal Democrat

TUS = Trade Unionist and Socialist Coalition

SDP = Social Democratic Party

Pld = Plaid Cymru

CPB = Communist Party of Britain

Ind = Independents and residents' groups

BIG JOE'S LIVERPOOL MAFIA?

Joe Anderson and Derek Hatton

Two former senior members of the Labour party in Liverpool have finally been charged by Merseyside Police, five years after their initial arrests.  Joe Anderson and Derek Hatton are among 12 individuals charged with corruption and/or misconduct offences.  The alleged offences relate to the awarding of building contracts in the city between 2010 and 2020.

Anderson, who very much has the appearance of the archetypal mafia boss, faces three charges.  Big Joe was arrested alongside Hatton and three others in 2020, while he was Liverpool mayor.  He was arrested on suspicion of conspiracy to commit bribery and intimidating a witness, although he has not been charged with the latter. His son David also faces a misconduct charge.

Anderson, who was previously leader of Liverpool City Council, was suspended by Labour shortly after his arrest, but refused to stand down as mayor and instead served out the remainder of his second term as an independent, which ended in 2021.  Sound familiar, Mike Amesbury?

Anderson tried to jump on the Westminster gravy train in 2017, but lost selection to trade unionist Dan Carden.

The name Derek Hatton will certainly be familiar with older readers.  In the 1980s Hatton was the loudest and most infamous voice in Liverpool Labour, despite the peak of his political career being a three year stint as deputy leader of the council.  An avowed Trotskyite communist, Hatton was a ringleader in the stand-off with Thatcher's government over her attempt to rein in council spending.  His actions during the rebellion led to his downfall and the end of his political career.  Expelled from Labour in 1986, he tried multiple times to rejoin the party, finally succeeding in 2019 under Corbyn's national leadership.  Less than two years later he was arrested and now faces two charges alongside his wife Sonjia, who was formerly a planning office at Liverpool City Council.

The full list of those charged can be found below.  They will appear before Preston magistrates on March 28.

• David Anderson (Joe Anderson's son), 37, of Wavertree, charged with one count of conspiracy to commit misconduct in a public office.
• Joe Anderson (former leader of Liverpool City Council, former Liverpool mayor), 67, of Knotty Ash, charged with with one count of bribery, one count of misconduct in a public office and one count of conspiracy to commit misconduct in a public office.
• Andrew Barr (former assistant director at Liverpool City Council), 51, of Ainsdale, charged with conspiracy to commit misconduct in a public office and one count of bribery.
• Phillipa Cook, 49, of Mossley Hill, charged with two counts of bribery.
• Alex Croft, 29, of Aughton, Lancashire, charged with one count of bribery.
• Julian Flanagan, 53, of Crosby charged with one count of conspiracy to commit bribery.
• Paul Flanagan, 61, of Knowsley Village, charged with one count of conspiracy to commit bribery.
• Derek Hatton (former deputy leader of Liverpool City Council, prior to date of offences), 77, of Aigburth, charged with one count of bribery and one count of counsel or procure misconduct in a public office.
• Sonjia Hatton (Derek Hatton's wife, former planning officer at Liverpool City Council, 49, of Aigburth, charged with one count of misconduct in a public office.
• Nicholas Kavanagh (former director at Liverpool City Council), 56, of Mossley Hill, charged with two counts of bribery.
• Adam McLean, 54, of Woolton, charged with one count of conspiracy to commit bribery.
• James Shalliker, 38, of Downholland, Lancashire, charged with one count of conspiracy to commit bribery.

COUNCIL BY-ELECTIONS 23.01.25

Six seats were up for grabs on Thursday, four of which were north of the border and two of those were a double header in Edinburgh.

The Lib Dems and SNP were defending a seat each in Edinburgh, but lost to the Tories and Labour.  The Conservative vote did particularly well in this by election.  Elsewhere in Scotland, Labour lost to the SNP in Stirling, while the party did not even bother defending their Shetland seat.

South of the border it was a Lib Dem hold in Liverpool and a Labour hold in the Potteries.  The latter saw a very strong swing to Reform UK who had not previously contested the seat.

Colinton/Fairmilehead, City of Edinburgh Council

(two seats, first preference votes)

Con: 2,027 (32.6%) +12.9%

Lab: 1,146 (18.4%) -1.1%

LDm: 1,009 (16.2%) -20.0%

SNP: 840 (13.5%) +2.7%

Grn: 426 (6.8%) +1.5%

Ref: 345 (5.5%) +1.9%

Ind: 256 (4.1%) +1.8%

SFP: 65 (1.0%) +0.4%

Ind: 38 (0.6%) -0.2%

Ind: 30 (0.5%) +0.2%

Ind: 23 (0.4%) -0.3%

Ind: 13 (0.2%) New

Ind: 5 (0.1%) New

Con GAIN from LDm (elected at stage 8)

Lab GAIN from SNP (elected at stage 13)

Much Woolton & Hunts Cross, Liverpool City Council

LDm: 1,011 (51.1%) -2.4%

Lab: 537 (27.1%) -4.2%

Ref: 218 (11.0%) New

Grn: 170 (8.6%) -2.0%

Con: 42 (2.1%) -2.3%

LDm HOLD

Bannockburn, Stirling Council

(first preference votes)

SNP: 565 (35.9%) +7.2%

Lab: 376 (23.9%) +3.1%

Ref: 358 (22.7%) New

Con: 169 (10.7%) -8.4%

LDm: 55 (3.5%) +1.4%

Grn: 53 (3.4%) +1.0%

SNP GAIN from Lab (elected at stage 6)

Town, Newcastle-under-Lyme Borough Council

Lab: 309 (39.9%) -28.4%

Con: 226 (29.2%) -2.5%

Ref: 168 (21.7%) New

LDm: 78 (9.2%) New

Lab HOLD

Shetland North, Shetland Islands Council

(first preference votes)

Ind: 887 (90.4%) New

Ind: 94 (9.5%) New

Ind GAIN from Lab

Abbreviations

Con = Conservative

Lab = Labour

LDm = Liberal Democrat

SNP = Scottish National Party

Grn = Green

Ref = Reform UK
SFP = Scottish Family Party

Ind = Independents

MEME MONDAY #6

The Labour conference wasn't a total disaster, but it couldn't distract anyone outside the hall from the disasters that continue to befall the party.  Starmer's sausage gaffe overshadowed his keynote speech and that is all it will be remembered for.  Duffield's resignation a few days later summed up another dreadful week for the PM, who declared that his lack of popularity is of no concern to him.  A PM who cares not for the popularity of his leadership and policies is destined to be very unpopular indeed...

Mon 23 Sept - 315 shares

Tue 24 Sept - 235 shares

Wed 25 Sept - 194 shares

Thurs 26 Sept - 172 shares

Fri 27 Sept - 82 shares

Fri 27 Sept - 119 shares

Sat 28 Sept - 182 shares

Sun 29 Sept - 153 shares

REGIONAL MAYORS 2024

The results for regional mayors will appear here as they come in.

East Midlands

Claire Ward (Lab) 181,040 (40.3%)

Ben Bradley (Con) 129,332 (28.8%)

Frank Adlington-Stringer (Grn) 50,660 (11.3%)

Alan Graves (RefUK) 49,201 (10.9%)

Matt Relf (Ind) 23,359 (5.2%)

Helen Tamblyn-Saville (LDem) 15,970 (3.6%)

Lab WIN (new post)

Greater Manchester

Andy Burnham (Lab) 420,749 (63.4%) -3.9%

Laura Evans (Con) 68,946 (10.4%) -9.2%

Nick Buckley (Ind) 50,304 (7.6%) New

Dan Barker (RefUK) 49,532 (7.5%) +4.8%

Hannah Spencer (Grn) 45,905 (6.9%) +2.5%

Jake Austin (LDem) 28,195 (4.2%) +1.0%

Lab HOLD

Liverpool City Region

Steve Rotheram (Lab) 183,932 (68.0%) +9.7%

Jade Marsden (Con) 27,708 (10.2%) -9.4%

Tom Crone (Grn) 26,417 (9.8%) -2.0%

Rob McAllister-Bell (LDem) 21,366 (7.9%) -2.4%

Ian Smith (Ind) 11,032 (4.1%) New

Lab HOLD

London

Sadiq Khan (Lab) 1,088,225 (43.8%) +3.8%

Susan Hall (Con) 812,397 (32.7%) -2.6%

Rob Blackie (LDem) 145,184 (5.8%) +1.4%

Zoë Garbett (Grn) 145,114 (5.8%) -2.0%

Howard Cox (RefUK) 78,865 (3.1%) New

Natalie Campbell (Ind) 47,815 (1.9%) New

Amy Gallagher (SDP) 34,449 (1.4%) +1.1%

Femy Amin (AnWe) 29,280 (1.2%) New

Andreas Michli (Ind) 26,121 (1.1%) New

Tarun Ghulati (Ind) 24,702 (1.0%) New

Count Binface (Ind) 24,260 (1.0%) n/c

Nick Scanlon (BritF) 20,519 (0.8%) New

Brian Rose (Ind) 7,501 (0.3%) -0.9%

Lab HOLD

North East

Kim McGuinness (Lab) 185,051 (41.0%)

Jamie Driscoll (Ind) 126,652 (28.0%)

Guy Renner-Thompson (Con) 52,446 (12.0%)

Paul Donaghy (RefUK) 41,147 (9.0%)

Aidan King (LDem) 25,485 (6.0%)

Andrew Gray (Grn) 17,631 (4.0%)

Lab WIN (new post)

Salford

Paul Dennett (Lab) 30,753 (61.5%) +2.5%

Jillian Collinson (Con) 10,930 (21.9%) -1.5%

David Jones (Grn) 5,623 (11.2%) +2.4%

Sally Griffiths (TUSC) 2,681 (5.4%) New

Lab HOLD

South Yorkshire

Oliver Coppard (Lab) 138,611 (50.9%) +7.8%

Nick Allen (Con) 44,945 (16.5%) n/c

Douglas Johnson (Grn) 37,142 (13.6%) +1.2%

Hannah Kitching (LDem) 31,002 (11.4%) +0.6%

David Bettney (SDP) 20,835 (7.6%) +3.7%

Lab HOLD

Tees Valley

Ben Houchen (Con) 81,930 (53.6%) -19.1%

Chris McEwan (Lab) 63,141 (41.3%) +4.1%

Simon Thorley (LDem) 7,679 (5.0%) + 5.0%

Con HOLD

West Midlands

Richard Parker (Lab) 225,590 (37.8%) -1.8%

Andy Street (Con) 224,082 (37.5%) -11.2%

Akhmed Yakoob (Ind) 69,621 (11.7%) New

Elaine Williams (RefUK) 34,471 (5.8%) +3.6%

Siobhan Harper-Nunes (Grn) 31,036 (5.2%) -0.6%

Sunny Virk (LDem) 12,176 (2.0%) -1.6%

Lab GAIN from Con

West Yorkshire

Tracy Brabin (Lab) 275,430 (50.4%) +7.3%

Arnold Craven (Con) 82,757 (15.1%) -14.0%

Andrew Cooper (Grn) 66,648 (12.2%) +3.0%

Bob Buxton (Yrks) 47,937 (8.8%) -0.9%

Jonathan Tilt (Ind) 46,443 (8.5%) New

Stewart Golton (LDem) 27,501 (5.0%) n/c

Lab HOLD

York & North Yorkshire

David Skaith (Lab) 66,761 (35.1%)

Keane Duncan (Con) 51,967 (27.3%)

Felicity Cunliffe-Lister (LDem) 30,867 (16.2%)

Kevin Foster (Grn) 15,188 (8.0%)

Keith Tordoff (Ind) 13,250 (7.0%)

Paul Haslam (Ind) 12,370 (6.5%)

Lab WIN (new post)

BYRNE WINS BY 12 VOTES

In a blow to Keir Starmer, hard left MP Ian Byrne has narrowly fended off an attempt to deselect him from the ultra safe seat of Liverpool West Derby.  His place on the Westminster gravy train was being challenged by two councillors, one of whom dropped out of the contest on the day of the vote.  Cllr Kimberley Whitehead, of Hyndburn Borough Council, withdrew hours before Sunday's vote and backed Cllr Anthony Lavelle for the seat.  This was surely a realisation (or a nudge from above) that the pair of them standing would split the vote and give Byrne an easy win.

It was the correct assumption, as Byrne ended up defeating the Liverpool councillor by the slender margin of just twelve votes.

The hustings meeting and subsequent vote is said to have been a tense affair, with security guards on the doors and claims that some members were 'barred from entry'.  Byrne had accused the Lavelle camp of 'intimidation' earlier in the campaign, claims which were furiously denied.  The MP had also been threatening 'legal action', presumably in the event that he lost the vote.

Byrne was congratulated upon his victory by many of his comrades in the Socialist Campaign Group, including Jeremy Corbyn, Zarah Sultana and Nadia Whittome.

Also congratulating Byrne was the member for Poplar and Limehouse.  Apsana Begum is thought to be the third hard left MP to face the threat of deselection, although there is still no news of challengers.  Her London colleague Sam Tarry was deselected last month.

BYRNE'S BATTLE

Ian Byrne

Labour MP Ian Byrne faces local competition to retain his place as a Labour candidate at the next general election.  Byrne is the third hard left MP to have lost 'trigger ballots' meaning that he must go through a reselection process to be the party's candidate for Liverpool West Derby.  He will go up against Liverpool councillor Anthony Lavelle and Hyndburn councillor Kimberley Whitehead for the ultra safe Labour seat, boasting a current majority of 29,984.

Byrne has attracted some impressive support for his bid.  Last weekend he was joined on the campaign trail by Liverpool metro mayor Steve Rotheram and fellow Scouser Andy Burnham.  The endorsement of Burnham is of particular interest, as Burnham is much closer to Starmer in terms of politics than Corbyn.  While Burnham likes to paint himself as the 'saviour of the north' he actually backed Starmer in the 2020 leadership election, rather than either of the two candidates representing constituencies in the Greater Manchester region he represents as metro mayor.  His endorsement of Byrne at this stage could be seen as a sleight to Starmer, who would clearly benefit from the loss of another hard left MP.

A banner unfurled at Liverpool's Anfield football stadium recently

With such a safe seat and huge salary at stake, perhaps it will come as no surprise that the West Derby contest has turned ugly fast.  Byrne posted a statement on his social media channels last weekend alleging 'intimidation' from an unnamed rival campaign, including unnamed politicians.  This was angrily denied by Cllr Harry Doyle, a supporter of Cllr Lavelle's campaign, who called on Byrne to retract his statement.  Rival campaign meetings for both Byrne and Lavelle took place next door to each other on the day of the alleged 'intimidation'.

Local party members will vote on who will be West Derby's next Labour candidate (and inevitably MP) on Sunday 20 November, following a hustings.  That should be a fiery evening!

IAN BYRNE TRIGGERED

Ian Byrne

A third member of Labour's Socialist Campaign Group is to face a reselection battle for the next general election.  Foul-mouthed Ian Byrne will follow in the footsteps of comrades Sam Tarry and Apsana Begum when members vote on whether he will represent Labour at the next election.  Like Tarry and Begum, Byrne was part of the 2019 hard left intake of MPs.  A Liverpool councillor, he was selected after the incumbent for Liverpool West Derby - Stephen Twigg - inexplicably stood down.

Before being elected to the safe Labour seat, Byrne was revealed to have posted several sweary social media posts targeting female politicians.  In 2015 he posted a meme to his Facebook page featuring Conservative peer Michelle Mone and wrote: "Hit this c*** where it hurts".  He also described Tory MP Esther McVey as a 'bastard'.  Byrne subsequently deleted his Facebook account.

Having lost a string of 'trigger ballots' in his constituency, Byrne will now face a reselection vote if and when alternative candidates come forward.  Sam Tarry is the only other Labour MP to face such a vote in this parliamentary term and he lost, meaning that he will no longer be the Labour MP for Ilford South after the next election.  His London colleague Apsana Begum will also face a reselection vote in the near future.

Byrne responded to the reselection news with the following statement and repeated Tarry's insinuations that the electronic voting process is potentially compromised.

Under Jeremy Corbyn's leadership, the threshold for MPs to face reselection was lowered from 50 per cent to a third.  This came following a surge in Labour membership and the intention was to oust moderate MPs and replace them with far left Corbynistas.  However, many of those Corbyn loyalists left the party after Starmer took over and it's now far left MPs like Byrne who face the threat of deselection.  There's some irony there.

COOPER STEPS DOWN

Labour's Rosie Cooper has stood down as the MP for West Lancashire with immediate effect, triggering a by-election for later this year.  Cooper has accepted a role as chair of the Mersey Care NHS Foundation Trust.  Other MPs may have tried to continue their ride on the Westminster gravy train in conjunction with an additional job, particularly given that Starmer's proposed ban on second jobs is non-existent and openly flouted by his frontbenchers.  Cooper is clearly a more honourable member.

Already 72 years of age, Cooper had recently been re-selected for the next election, albeit she was far from approaching any sort of record for the oldest barnacle on the benches.  Many MPs have served well into their 80s (and even 90s).

Like our current Prime Minister, Cooper started out as a Liberal.  She represented her hometown of Liverpool as a liberal councillor from the age of 22 and became lord mayor in 1992.  She unsuccessfully fought two general elections and a parliamentary by-election in the 1980s.  In 1992 she fought another general election, now as a Liberal Democrat.  All the seats she contested were in her native Merseyside.

She made the switch to Labour in 1999 and continued to serve on Liverpool City Council until her defeat the following year.  She was selected to contest West Lancashire at the 2005 general election, a seat she has held ever since.  Her majorities have fluctuated between a low of 4,343 (2010) and 11,689 (2017).  Her majority is currently 8,336.

A fairly innocuous backbencher, Cooper never served on the front benches of any of her five party leaders.  She was among 22 Labour MPs who opposed gay marriage in 2013 and backed Remain in 2016, although she consistently vowed to uphold the outcome and repeatedly voted against her Brexit-blocking comrades in the 2019 impasse.  She backed David Miliband for the party leadership in 2010 and Lisa Nandy in 2020.  She did not publicly endorse a candidate in the 2015 and 2016 leadership elections.

No date has been set yet for the by-election to succeed Cooper.  The seat has been held by Labour since 1992, before which it was a Conservative held seat.

West Lancashire general election 2019 result

Rosie Cooper (Lab) 27,458 (52.1%) -6.8%

Jack Gilmore (Con) 19,122 (36.3%) -1.1%

Simon Thomson (LDem) 2,560 (4.9%) +2.9%

Marc Stanton (Brexit) 2,275 (4.3%) New

John Puddifer (Grn) 1,248 (2.4%) +1.1%

STARMER CONFRONTED IN LIVERPOOL

Kri Starmer confronted by Corbynista protestor (picture Skwawkbox)

You won't have seen it on broadcast media, but Keir Starmer was not exactly universally welcomed in Liverpool on Monday.  While the MSM focused in on his big speech, nothing was said about any protests and a subsequent confrontation with a far left activist.  Starmer was reportedly snuck into the venue for his main speech to avoid left-wing demonstrators outside.  Following the speech, the Labour leader and his team had gone to a cafe in the city, but local activists got wind of this and picketed the establishment.  A 71-year-old Corbynista called Audrey White then confronted Starmer as he sat at his table.

White had two main beefs with Starmer and began by attacking his collaboration with The Sun, a newspaper that remains a touchy subject in Liverpool more than three decades on from its controversial coverage of the Hillsborough disaster.  She then accuses Starmer of betraying the 'Corbyn legacy' and says: "We may as well have a Tory if we a person like you, who lies to the party".  A man then intervenes and attempts to usher her away, while Starmer continues to look on nervously without saying a word.

It's incredibly damaging footage and led to the hashtag #StarmerOut trending briefly on Twitter.  However, there was nothing to be seen of it on broadcast media.

Click below for the video.

COUNCIL BY-ELECTIONS 30.06.22

Ten local elections this week - five Conservative defences, two Labour defences and three open contests.  Two of those free-for-alls came in the Outer Hebrides, where two seats were up for grabs following boundary changes.  The council authority used to be called the Western Isles Council, but this was replaced in 1997 with its Gaelic name - Na h-Eileanan Siar - making it the only council authority in the UK with a Gaelic name.  Both contests were dominated and won by independents.  Please note that Scotland uses a form of proportional representation ie. the single transferable vote.

The other free-for-all was a gain for Labour as they took a seat in Middlesbrough previously held by an independent.

It was another difficult night for the Tories as they lost three of the five seats they were defending - two to the Lib Dems (Bernwood and Bridlington North) and one to Labour (Midway).  Labour held both seats they were defending.

Absences this week were UKIP (Bridlington North, Midway), the Liberal Party (Fazakerley), the Conservatives (Fazakerley) and three independents in Bridlington North.

Bernwood, Buckinghamshire County Council

LDem: 1,158 (38.7%) +21.4%

Grn: 1,030 (34.4%) -3.9%

Con: 723 (24.1%) -9.8%

Lab: 85 (2.8%) -7.7%

LDem GAIN from Con

Barraigh agus Bhatarsaigh, Na h-Eileanan Siar

(first preference votes)

Ind: 189 (49.3%)

Ind: 181 (47.3%)

Ind: 13 (3.4%)

Ind GAIN (elected at stage 2)

Sgìr’ Ùige agus Càrlabhagh, Na h-Eileanan Siar

(first preference votes)

Ind: 222 (35.4%)

LDem: 128 (20.4%)

Ind: 113 (18%)

SNP: 96 (15.3%)

Grn: 57 (9.1%)

Ind: 11 (1.8%)

Ind: 1 (0.2%)

Ind GAIN (elected at stage 6)

South Croydon, Croydon London Borough Council

Con: 1,306 (42.9%) +2.9%

Lab: 821 (27.0%) -2.1%

LDem: 448 (14.7%) +0.6%

Grn: 269 (8.8%) -5.5%

Ind: 158 (5.2%) New

UKIP: 25 (0.8%) -1.6%

Ind: 18 (0.6%) New

Con HOLD

Bridlington North, East Riding of Yorkshire Council

LDem: 1,950 (57.1%) +16.8%

Con: 1,077 (31.5%) +6.4%

Lab: 171 (5.0%) -4.7%

SDP: 125 (3.7%) New

Yorks: 93 (2.7%) -8.0%

LDem GAIN from Con

Fazakerley, Liverpool City Council

Lab: 1,365 (57.5%) -25.6%

Ind: 638 (26.9%) New

LDem: 290 (12.2%) +8.2%

Grn: 79 (3.3%) -1.0%

Lab HOLD

Berwick Hills & Pallister, Middlesbrough Council

Lab: 361 (56.8%) +26.5%

Ind: 204 (32.1%) New

Con: 53 (8.3%) +2.8%

LDem: 11 (1.7%) New

Grn: 7 (1.1%) New

Lab GAIN from Ind

Ollerton, Newark & Sherwood District Council

Lab: 962 (64.9%) +0.6%

Con: 395 26.7%) -9.0%

Ind: 125 (8.4%) New

Lab HOLD

Midway, South Derbyshire District Council

Lab: 600 (52.6%) +14.8%

Con: 540 (47.4%) +9.1%

Lab GAIN from Con

Cleveleys Park, Wyre Borough Council

Con: 721 (53.7%) -9.0%

Lab: 621 (46.3%) +9.0%

Con HOLD

Abbreviations

LDem = Liberal Democrat

Grn = Green

Con =  Conservative

Lab = Labour

SNP = Scottish National Party

UKIP = United Kingdom Independence Party

SDP = Social Democratic Party

Yorks = Yorkshire

Ind = Independence

COUNCIL BY-ELECTIONS 07.04.22

There were nine by-elections on Thursday and it was a very mixed bag with all but four of those seats changing hands.

The Conservatives were defending three seats - one each in Dorset, East Yorkshire and West Sussex.  They lost all three seats - two to the Greens and one to the Lib Dems.  The Green success in Horsham was particularly stunning as they were newcomers to the poll, but were undoubtedly assisted by the absence of a Labour candidate this time.

There was better news for the Tories in Derbyshire where they gained a seat from Labour and tipped High Peak Borough Council into No Overall Control.

Labour were the only party to hold any seats on Thursday, successfully defending all four.  However, there was a significant reduction in their vote in two Liverpool seats.

The remaining seat was an open contest in Devon, caused by a retiring independent.  The Lib Dems mopped up there.

Absentees this week were UKIP in East Yorkshire and Telford, Labour in Horsham, the Liberal Party in Warbreck (Liverpool) and Mid-Devon.  Independents were absent from Mid-Devon and Wolverhampton.

Lyme & Charmouth, Dorset Council

Grn: 594 (43.8%) +27.0%

Con: 359 (26.5%) -13.7%

Ind: 320 (23.6%) -6.7%

Lab: 82 (6.1%) -6.6%

Grn GAIN from Con

South Hunsley, East Riding of Yorkshire Council

LDem: 1,351 (54.7%) +41.1%

Con: 907 (36.8%) -28.5%

Lab: 110 (4.5%) -6.8%

Grn: 100 (4.1%) New

LDem GAIN from Con

Cote Heath, High Peak Borough Council

Con: 585 (55.5%) +5.4%

Lab: 413 (39.2%) -10.7%

Grn: 56 (5.3%) New

Con GAIN from Lab

Storrington & Washington, Horsham District Council

Grn: 1,281 (47.9%) New

Con: 943 (35.2%) -16.1%

LDem: 453 (16.9%) -13.5%

Grn GAIN from Con

Everton, Liverpool City Council

Lab: 925 (62.0%) -24.6%

Grn: 362 (24.2%) +20.5%

Lib: 84 (5.6%) +3.4%

Con: 51 (3.4%) -1.7%

TUSC: 46 (3.1%) +3.1%

LDem: 25 (1.7%) -0.6%

Lab HOLD

Warbreck, Liverpool City Council

Lab: 912 (48.2%) -31.8%

LDem: 874 (46.2%) +38.3%

Grn: 61 (3.2%) -1.1%

Con: 46 (2.4%) -4.1%

Lab HOLD

Cullompton South, Mid Devon District Council

LDem: 318 (47.9%) +26.2%

Con: 279 (42.0%) +9.3%

Lab: 67 (10.1%) New

LDem GAIN from Ind

Brookside, Telford and Wrekin Council

Lab: 531 (58.8%) +20.0%

Con: 318 (35.2%) +11.8%

LDem: 54 (6.0%) -11.6%

Lab HOLD

East Park, Wolverhampton City Council

Lab: 783 (65.5%) +6.2%

Con: 412 (34.5%) +17.0%

Lab HOLD

Abbreviations

Grn = Green

Con = Conservative

Lab = Labour

LDem = Liberal Democrat

Lib = Liberal

TUSC = Trade Unionist and Socialist Coalition

Ind = Independents

COUNCIL BY-ELECTIONS 18.11.21

There were nine by-elections this week across England, including three in the Labour stronghold of Liverpool.  While Labour held all three of those seats with ease, their vote share dipped considerably in each ward.  Labour were defending three seats elsewhere and held two - one in Ribble, Lancashire and another in Manchester.  They lost a seat to the Green Party in Canterbury.

There were no Conservative defences this week, but they sensationally gained a seat from the Lib Dems in Devon where they won by one vote.  In that contest the Lib Dems slipped to third, while a Labour surge fell short of victory by a single vote.

In other action there was a free-for-all in Gloucestershire and a defence for one of Britain's oldest parties.  The independently minded residents of Tewkesbury replaced one independent with another, while the Liberal Party held a seat in Ryedale, North Yorkshire.  The Liberals, as opposed to its descendent party the Liberal Democrats, only holds eight council seats across the UK.  However, it faired far better than the Lib Dems in two of the Liverpool by-elections held on Thursday, finishing second in both.

UKIP did not contest three seats it had previously stood in (Bamber Bridge East, Brockworth East and Bere Ferrer).

Gorrell, Canterbury City Council

Grn: 1,149 (43.9%) +10.3%

Lab: 803 (30.7%) -6.0%

Con: 608 (23.2%) +0.2%

WPB: 58 (2.2%) New

Grn GAIN from Lab

Anfield, Liverpool City Council

Lab: 604 (55.9%) -11.5%

Lib: 281 (26.0%) +15.0%

LDem: 73 (6.8%) +2.1%

Grn: 72 (6.7%) -0.9%

Con: 42 (3.9%) -1.4%

Ind: 9 (0.8%) -3.3%

Lab HOLD

Clubmoor, Liverpool City Council

Lab: 787 (54.5%) -7.6%

Lib: 324 (22.4%) +3.2%

Ind: 167 (11.6%) New

TUSC: 54 (3.7%) New

Grn: 45 (3.1%) -4.7%

LDem: 34 (2.4%) -3.2%

Con: 33 (2.3%) -3.0%

Lab HOLD

Kirkdale, Liverpool City Council

Lab: 852 (61.7%) -20.5%

Ind: 171 (12.4%) New

Grn: 160 (11.6%) +7.5%

TUSC: 84 (6.1%) +0.2%

Con: 57 (4.1%) +0.1%

LDem: 57 (4.1%) +1.1%

Lab HOLD

Chorlton, Manchester City Council

Lab: 1,581 (52.1%) -4.9%

LDem: 657 (21.7%) +8.9%

Grn: 608 (20.1%) -1.0%

Con: 93 (3.1%) -1.6%

WEP: 66 (2.2%) -1.1%

Ind: 27 (0.9%) New

Lab HOLD

Cropton, Ryedale District Council

Lib: 202 (39.6%) -15.5%

Con: 155 (30.4%) +10.9%

Grn: 121 (23.7%) New

Lab: 32 (6.3%) New

Lib HOLD

Bamber Bridge East, South Ribble Borough Council

Lab: 376 (53.7%) +7.2%

Con: 275 (39.3%) +9.5%

Grn: 49 (7.0%) New

Lab HOLD

Brockworth East, Tewkesbury Borough Council

Ind: 499 (68.3%) New

Con: 110 (15.0%) -9.4%

LDem: 87 (11.9%) -1.0%

Lab: 35 (4.8%) New

Ind GAIN from Ind

Bere Ferrers, West Devon Borough Council

Con: 362 (32.5%) +2.4%

Lab: 361 (32.4%) +12.1%

LDem: 216 19.4%) -11.8%

Grn: 176 (15.8%) New

Con GAIN from LDem

Abbreviations

Grn = Green

Lab = Labour

Con = Conservative

WPB = Workers Party of Britain

Lib = Liberal

LDem = Liberal Democrat

TUSC = Trade Unionist and Socialist Coalition

WEP = Women's Equality Party

Ind = Independents

KHAN RINSED OVER MASKS (AGAIN)

Sadiq Khan has been roundly mocked again on Twitter after he announced he had changed his profile picture.  Most of us mere mortals don't feel the need to make a special announcement for such a trivial matter, but thou art not the all powerful king of London who loves himself so dearly.

Sadiq posted his new picture on Thursday night (see above).  The photo is doubly special for the mayor - the chap he is standing with is the prolific centre-forward Mo Salah, who not only plays for Sadiq's favourite team Liverpool, but shares his Muslim faith too.

After posting his new picture Khan was inundated with reminders of one of his recent tweets, namely the one in which he implored people to wear face masks this winter.  "More people there than on the tube" one commented.  "You're just pissing on us and saying it's raining" wrote another.  Another wrote: "This was OK because neither one was breathing normally.  Mo was holding his breath to protect against the stench of hypocrisy and corruption, and Khunt was just breathing in - the celebrity and fame are what he thrives on".  Scores more commented along the lines of 'rules for thee, but not for me' and 'do as I say, not as I do'.

Many others were surprised to learn that Khan was a Liverpool fan, considering he was born in Tooting.  "You must be a proud Londoner, supporting Liverpool" was one comment.  "You could support a London team, you know...  Or a Russian one like Chelsea" another posted humorously.

Khan's ongoing face mask hypocrisy formed part of our latest YouTube video (see below).

UPDATE

Following his Twitter rinsing Khan ditched his Salah profile picture and swapped if for a picture of himself standing in what appears to be the Barbican Conservatory.  He is all alone, but still maskless.

BACKLASH OVER STARMER'S SUN PIECE

Keir Starmer's decision to write an article for The Sun newspaper over the weekend has gone down like a lead balloon with many of his MPs.  Merseyside MPs have been particularly scathing, as have Liverpool mayors Joanne Anderson and Steve Rotheram.  Even frontbenchers such as Mike Amesbury, Bill Esterson and Alison McGovern have publicly lashed out.

Note that Amesbury, the shadow housing minister, cannot even spell the first name of his party leader...

Far left Labour MPs have also been heavily critical - no great surprise there.  Among them was Diane Abbott who issued a couple of tweets and appeared to suggest that Starmer had broken a pledge not to speak to The Sun.  However, what Starmer had said during his leadership campaign in January 2020 was: "I certainly won’t be giving any interviews to The Sun during the course of this campaign."  There was no pledge beyond that.

In direct response to Abbott's complaints, The Sun brutally reminded her that she had herself written for the newspaper during her 2010 leadership campaign.  She had also posed in a Sun-branded taxi.

Starmer is not the first Labour leader to have embraced The Sun newspaper, usually referred to by Scousers as 'The S*n' or 'The Scum' after it cast aspersions on Liverpool fans in the wake of the Hillsborough disaster.  Ed Miliband posed with an edition of the newspaper in 2014 and faced such a backlash that he later issued an apology.  One Labour councillor in Liverpool resigned in protest.

Will Starmer backtrack or weather the storm?

LIVERPOOL CITY REGION MAYORAL RESULT

No surprise here as Labour hold easily.  Eight candidates contested this election in 2017.

Liverpool City Region Mayor (Lab HOLD)

Steve Rotheram (Lab) 198,726 (58.3%) -1.0%

Jade Marsden (Con) 66,702 (19.6%) -0.8%

Gary Cargill (Green) 40.211 (11.8%) +6.9

David Newman (LDem) 35,049 (10.3%) +3.5%

LIVERPOOL MAYORAL RESULT

No great shock here, but Labour have held the Liverpool mayoral position, albeit with a reduced majority.  Joanne Anderson - no relation to her controversial predecessor Joe - had to go to a final round run-off with the independent candidate.  Labour won this contest outright in 2016.

Liverpool Mayor (Lab HOLD)

Joanne Anderson (Lab) 38,958 (38.2%) -14.4%

Stephen Yip (Ind) 22,047 (21.8%) New

Richard Kemp (Lib Dem) 17,166 (16.8%) +0.7%

Tom Crone (Green) 8,768 (8.7%) -2.2%

Steve Radford (Lib) 7,135 (7.1%) New

Katie Burgess (Con) 4,187 (4.1%) +0.5%

Roger Bannister (TUSC) 2,912 (2.9%) -2.2%

Final Round

Joanne Anderson (Lab) 59.2%

Stephen Yip (Ind) 40.8%

THE WEEK IN CARTOONS 27 SEPT-3 OCT 2020

27.09.20 - Nick Newman, Sunday Times

27.09.20 - Morten Morland, Sunday Times

27.09.20 - Bob Moran, Sunday Telegraph

28.09.20 - Ben Jennings, Guardian

28.09.20 - Morten Morland, Times

29.09.20 - Patrick Blower, Daily Telegraph

29.09.20 - Christian Adams, Evening Standard

30.09.20 - Patrick Blower, Daily Telegraph

30.09.20 - Christian Adams, Evening Standard

30.09.20 - Tjeerd Royaard, NRC Handelsblad

01.10.20 - Peter Brookes, Times

01.10.20 - Christian Adams, Evening Standard

01.10.20 - Bob Moran, Daily Telegraph

02.10.20 - Paul Thomas, Daily Mail

02.10.20 - Matt Pritchett, Daily Telegraph

02.10.20 - AF Branco, Daily Torch

03.10.20 - Bob Moran, Daily Telegraph

03.10.20 - Paul Thomas, Daily Mail

STARMER THE "BRYLCREEMED SHITHOUSE"

A Labour councillor in Liverpool has let rip at Keir Starmer on her Facebook page, labelling him a 'brylcreemed shithouse'.  Cllr Sarah Morton was one of a number of hard left candidates selected for last year's council elections in the staunchly Labour city.  Writing in response to the government's A-levels u-turn, she took umbrage not with the wicked Tories, but her own party leader.  Accusing Starmer of taking credit for the u-turn, Cllr Morton issued a warning to Starmer and his deputy Angela Rayner: "This was a grassroots win, so you and Ange should be worried, because they are coming for your jobs, and the rest of us arl [old] activists, will do whatever we can to support them".

The full post was shared in a screenshot by her colleague Cllr Malcolm Kennedy (see below).  Cllr Kennedy - a moderate and Starmer supporter - commented:  "I must admit that when Corbyn was leader I had some pretty stern criticisms. Lamentably, I failed to mention his hair style".  Kennedy also fired off a tweet to Brylcreem, joking:  "Are you interested in a great marketing opportunity?"

Tension in Liverpool Labour is still high following last year's controversial de-selections ahead of the council elections.  At least five sitting councillors were de-selected and replaced with hard left pro-Corbyn candidates, one of whom was Morton.

The left's campaign against Starmer has picked up in the last week and they are now openly discussing a leadership challenge next year.  It's almost like-for-like revenge for the leadership challenge against Corbyn one year after he was elected leader.  On Sunday the hashtag #StarmerOut trended on Twitter for several hours.

Cllr Morton defended her comments about Starmer in a response to the Liverpool Echo...

"As a councillor and trade unionist representing a ward that consistently ranks highly on markers of deprivation, I know that many of those I represent have been frustrated by the positions taken by the Labour leadership on issues such as support for renters, the Black Lives Matter protests and the response to the Coronavirus crisis. 

The post was to my personal Facebook account for friends only - and is an account which doesn't identify my political role or use my full name. 

I’m a working class woman and anyone who knows me will tell you I’m not known for mincing my words. I use a different social media account for my public-facing councillor duties and would express my position differently in such a context".

Cllr Morton pictured with Corbyn loyalist Ian Byrne, who is now the MP for
Liverpool West Derby as well as still being a councillor

JUMPING ON THE LFC BANDWAGON

We all know that the city of Liverpool is renowned for being red, politically anyway.  Football wise there is a huge portion of blue in there, so perhaps it is for the former reason that so many Labour politicians - far and wide - were lightning quick to heap praise on the new Premier League champions.  They're not Scousers, some of them have probably never even been to a football match, but they're on the Liverpool FC bandwagon and they want some of that glory...

I’m an Arsenal fan, but huge well deserved congratulations @LFC! Fantastic season despite all the challenges. https://t.co/7XR3f2ZR3H

— Keir Starmer (@Keir_Starmer) June 25, 2020

To be fair to Sir Squeaky, when he was asked earlier this year what the most exciting thing he'd ever done in his life was he replied that it was "going to football with my kids".  Enough said about that.  Next bandwagon jumper...

I was 9 yrs old when @LFC clinched the title on 28 April 1990. This team-that clinched the title on 25 June 2020-compares to any in @LFC’s history: strong defensively, playing with intensity & attacking brilliance, managed by the great Jurgen Klopp #PremierLeagueChampions #YNWA

— Nick Thomas-Symonds MP (@NickTorfaen) June 25, 2020

Ah, the Shadow Home Secretary, who is still less recognisable than someone who came last on Big Brother twenty years ago.  His assessment of the Liverpool team from his home in south Wales will of course be of great comfort to Liverpool fans.

Get in there....Champions!!!

Not the circumstances in which I wanted @LFC to do it but what an achievement from this incredible team & that includes the manager

🏆 #YNWA https://t.co/NeKFeSUNms

— Sadiq Khan (@SadiqKhan) June 25, 2020

Sadiq sucks up to every other minority in London, so why not the three Scousers who have settled there too?  At least Everton fan Andy Burnham was a bit more genuine about his feelings...

🤦🏻‍♂️

— Andy Burnham (@AndyBurnhamGM) June 25, 2020

Congratulations @LFC.
Well deserved @premierleague champions, after a 30 years wait - they have been scintillating this season.
Breaking records along the way, including becoming the first team to win the title in June! 👏🏼 👏🏼 pic.twitter.com/DfHQbv86oP

— Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi MP (@TanDhesi) June 25, 2020

Tanmanjeet was born in Slough, so obviously he's a Livepool fan.

Get the prosecco out!!! 🍾🎉 Cheers Chelsea for allowing us to start the celebrations a few days early 👏

That guard of honour at the Etihad is going to be a thing of beauty ❤️#YNWA #CHEMCI #Champions @LFC pic.twitter.com/pNpj7oibBD

— Alex Davies-Jones MP/AS (@AlexDaviesJones) June 25, 2020

Alex comes from a village halfway between Cardiff and Swansea who don't have football teams apparently, so naturally she chose the next nearest team 200 miles away.  Poor effort!  Compare and contrast with the savvy Birmingham-raised Sultana who has provided photographic evidence of her life-long association with LFC.  Who needs Birmingham City or Aston Villa eh Zarah?

I’ve been waiting for this my whole life #YNWA pic.twitter.com/nmJ3Gjfne9

— Zarah Sultana MP (@zarahsultana) June 25, 2020

Finally, one of the sleaziest tweets came from Bournemouth posh boy communist Aaron boring Bastani, who for all we know may well have spent more time watching croquet than footy...

Congratulations to the scousers for winning the title. Liverpool is a great city with the best people in the country. Thoroughly deserved #YNWA

— Aaron Bastani (@AaronBastani) June 25, 2020

Doesn't all this smack of cultural appropriation?  Cancel, cancel!