Sir Ed Davey set Liberal Democrat sights on “historic” results in London in the May local elections by winning many more seats from Labour.
The Liberal Democrat leader was ramping up his party’s campaign as it seeks to gain control of its fourth council in the capital.
He was due to tour key battleground boroughs on Saturday including Camden, Ealing and Lambeth as his party targets Labour which is expected to lose hundreds of council seats across the city.
“For too long, Labour has taken Londoners for granted while our great capital has been neglected,” Sir Ed told the London Standard.
“Communities feel less safe as police front desks close, rents are soaring while too few affordable homes are built, and Tube fares keep rising while commuters face constant chaos.”
With Labour having fallen to a record low in the polls including in the capital, he added: “The Liberal Democrats have a historic opportunity to win across swathes of London as Labour’s support crumbles.
“We’re seeing a resurgence in our former strongholds and real momentum in new areas.”
The Lib Dems are expecting to make “big gains” against Labour in London including in Southwark, where former party chairman Sir Simon Hughes was the long-serving local MP.
The Bermondsey and Old Southwark constituency will be a “top target” for the Lib Dems at the next general election, expected in 2029.
Sir Ed is hoping his party will become the biggest party on the council in Merton, which includes the Wimbledon constituency won at the 2024 general election by Lib Dem Paul Kohler.
The Lib Dems already run Kingston, Richmond and Sutton councils in south west London, having won them from the Conservatives, and have 182 councillors across the capital.
But they are now particularly targeting Labour areas amid predictions that Sir Keir Starmer’s party faces fierce battles to hold onto at least 12 of its councils in the capital.
They are pouring resources into Holborn and St Pancras MP Sir Keir’s “backyard” as they are confident of winning more seats on Camden council after a by-election gain in West Hampstead last summer.
Known at Westminster for their local campaigning, they have already deliver one million leaflets across London this year, and knocked on 250,000 doors.
In Lambeth, they are eyeing more success after former Labour Mayor Councillor Tina Valcarcel, who represents Stockwell East, switched to the Lib Dems last November.
They are expecting to win more seats in Haringey, an area where Baroness Featherstone was MP for Hornsey and Wood Green from 2005 to 2015.
Labour is defending more than 1,150 seats out of just over 1,800 up for grabs in London on May 7.
The Tories will be seeking to win back Westminster, Wandsworth and Barnet having lost them to Sir Keir’s party four years ago, but they will also be under pressure from Reform UK.
Nigel Farage is aiming to gain control of several councils in Outer London, with natural targets for Reform including Bexley, Bromley and Havering.
