![\"Labour](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/britain\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/Starmer-1.jpg\")
\t\tPrime Minister Keir Starmer said the results were “tough” (Stefan Rousseau\/PA)\t<\/p>\n\t\t\tFriday 08 May 2026 5:30 am
\n\t\t\t\t\t\u00a0|\u00a0\u00a0Updated:\u00a0<\/p>\n
\t\t\tFriday 08 May 2026 8:46 am\n\t<\/p>\n
\t\tPrime Minister Keir Starmer said the results were “tough” (Stefan Rousseau\/PA)\t<\/p>\n
Good morning and welcome back to the City AM liveblog.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer<\/a> has taken responsibility for what he described as a \u201ctough\u201d set of local election results, as the Labour Party<\/a> suffered Reform gains in the North of England and braces for losses in London.<\/p>\n Reform UK gained hundreds of councillors on Friday morning, as party leader Nigel Farage hailed a \u201chistoric change in British politics\u201d.<\/p>\n Farage\u2019s party gained Havering, marking its first control of a council in London, as it threw its campaigning weight into boroughs on the outskirts of the capital.<\/p>\n \u201cForget left-right, there is no more left-right, it\u2019s gone, it\u2019s out of the window, it\u2019s finished. As you can see we are scoring stunning percentages in traditional old Labour areas,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n But Starmer\u2019s party has held on to some key London boroughs so far, including Merton and Hammersmith, though it lost Wandsworth and Westminster in tightly-fought battles with the Tories.<\/p>\n More than 5,000 council seats are up for grabs, including every single council seat in London. Previously dominant in the capital, Labour could lose a raft of London boroughs as it faces bitter challenges from Reform UK<\/a> on its right flank and the Green Party<\/a> on its left.<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t\tRead more<\/p>\n \t\t\tLocal elections 2026: Reform take control of Havering council amid wins across UK<\/a><\/p>\n Zack Polanski\u2019s resurgent Greens are targeting inner-city areas like Lewisham, Lambeth and Hackney \u2013 as well as Starmer\u2019s backyard in Camden. <\/p>\n Nigel Farage\u2019s Reform, on the other hand, are hopeful they can take outer boroughs like Hillingdon, Bromley and Bexley.<\/p>\n Starmer\u2019s party are defending 2,557 seats at this set of elections and some pundits have suggested they could lose up to 1,800. This would be a stunning wipeout which would send Labour reeling and put the Prime Minister in perhaps his weakest position yet.\u00a0<\/p>\n The City is bracing for market backlash from the elections and a potential Labour leadership challenge. <\/p>\n Get yourself up to date with our election preview<\/a> and profiles<\/a> of the state of play in every single London borough.<\/p>\n We\u2019ll bring you every London result as it comes in, plus key market and political reaction, so stay tuned.<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t\tRead more<\/p>\n