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Overview
- Keir Starmer said he will not resign following Friday’s bruising local elections that cost Labour control in long‑held areas.
- Reform UK won more than 400 council seats in England, breaking through in Labour heartlands in the North and Midlands and taking control in Havering, east London.
- Labour figures voiced support for Starmer as critics floated successors, with party rules requiring about 20% of Labour MPs to trigger a leadership contest.
- Results pointed to a more fragmented map as Labour and the Conservatives also lost ground to the Greens and Liberal Democrats, with counts in Scotland and Wales still being reported on Friday.
- Voters punished the government after scandals and policy stumbles, including anger over the Peter Mandelson ambassador appointment, while council turnovers now threaten local services such as social care, housing, and waste collection.