Good morning, and if you hate being awake this early, imagine how I feel. It’s local election night in England, an occasion best summarised by putting the TV on at 3.14am to hear Jonathan Ashworth MP say “Tamworth, Redditch, Ashby-de-la-Zouch”.
The first thing to say is that it’s much too soon to draw firm conclusions about how the vote has gone, with only a quarter of councils declaring overnight. But the early read, as the Tories lose control in places like Tamworth and Plymouth, is: this looks like a very bad night for them, and a fairly good one for Labour, who are on course to take the lead in the total number of councillors for the first time in 20 years – though the Liberal Democrats are also playing a key role in the Conservative decline.
