Difficult results for the Tories – ‘Red’ London

Defeat of the Conservatives in the local elections in Great Britain. Labor victory and strengthening of the Liberals. The separatist Sinn Fein is expected to win in the Northern Ireland Parliament.

This year, the British local elections were characterized as the biggest test for Boris Johnson. And not unjustly. They are the first after the Partygate scandal and of course the first after the wave of increases in the cost of living of the British. But the picture of the results so far is mixed for the Conservative party as it is difficult but not destructive.

The reason; Although key seats have been lost for the Conservatives, the non-sweeping victory of Labor, the country’s second-largest party, is somewhat reassuring for Johnson’s party and the battle it has to fight until the next UK general election. 2024.

The results so far

Of the 146 boroughs in England, more than half have produced results, and the clear picture in Wales and Scotland will be seen later in the afternoon. The Conservative Party’s biggest defeat and the real pressure on Johnson lies mainly in London City Councils. Characteristically, traditional Conservative municipalities such as Westminster, Wandsworth and Barnet passed into Labor hands.

It is worth noting that Westminster has belonged to the Tories since its inception in 1964, while Wandsworth – known as Margaret Thatcher’s favorite municipality – has been a key position for the party since 1978.

However, although Labor leader Sir Kir Starmer is celebrating, he has not swept the election. On the contrary, the Liberal Democrat party (Lib Dem) is the one that collects the most lost seats of the Conservative party and some of the Labor party.

Reactions of the parties

The Liberal leader so far, the winner of the election, Sir Ed Davy, hastened to clarify that he does not intend to cooperate with the Labor Party in the next elections. For his part, Labor leader Sir Kir Starmer said the election was a “turning point” for his party, which is now “re-entering the trajectory” of success in the next parliamentary elections.

On the other hand, Boris Johnson has not yet made any statement, which shows the “numbness” of the party from the results. Of course, some Conservative MPs did not remain so silent, blaming their leader directly for the defeat. Tory MP David Simmons was quoted as saying that “public confidence can be restored with a change of leadership”.

All eyes are on Northern Ireland

The results of the parliamentary elections in Northern Ireland are awaited with particular interest today as Brexit brings a different picture. For the first time since Good Friday in 1998, Sinn Fein’s separatist party appears to be dominating the DUP.

It is important to note that the victory is not entirely due to the rise of Sinn Fein supporters but primarily to the sinking of the Unionists, following public outrage over the infamous Northern Ireland Protocol and the feeling that the country was isolated from the rest of the United Kingdom.

Zoe Katzagiannaki, London

Source: Deutsche Welle