Labour has lost control of Tameside council — part of Deputy Prime Minister Angela Rayner’s constituency — in a dramatic night for Sir Keir Starmer’s party, with the authority now moving to no overall control after a sweeping set of defeats across Greater Manchester.
The party was defending 17 seats in the borough and lost 16 of them to Reform UK, marking one of the most striking shifts in voter behaviour of the night.
Across England, Labour has also lost control of seven other councils, including high-profile authorities such as Wandsworth, Westminster and Hartlepool, compounding pressure on the party leadership after a bruising set of results.
The losses have fuelled speculation about internal tensions, with Angela Rayner among senior figures potentially positioned to challenge Starmer’s leadership if the political fallout deepens.
Meanwhile, Reform UK leader Nigel Farage declared the results a “historic change in British politics”, claiming his party is now “scoring stunning percentages in traditional old Labour areas” and suggesting momentum could carry through to the next general election.
Farage likened Reform’s performance to clearing “Becher’s Brook” in the Grand National, saying: “If we cleared Becher’s Brook and landed well, we go on to win the Grand National.”
The Greens and Liberal Democrats also recorded gains across English councils, while the Conservatives suffered significant losses, continuing their post-government electoral decline.
Attention is now shifting beyond England, with further results due from devolved elections in Wales and Scotland. Labour is expected to lose the popular vote in Wales for the first time in over a century, while the SNP is forecast to remain the largest party in Scotland after nearly two decades in power.
The overall picture points to a volatile and fragmented political landscape — with traditional two-party dominance under sustained pressure and smaller parties capitalising on voter dissatisfaction across multiple regions.
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