Liberal Democrats leader Ed Davey
(Picture: AFP via Getty Images)Liberal Democrats leader Sir Ed Davey hailed a “historic night” for his party after it made breakthroughs in the so-called Tory ‘blue wall’ in south west London.
Although Labour retained overall control of Merton council, the Lib Dems gained 12 seats , overtaking the Tories as the second biggest party in the borough. Most notably they took seats off the Conservatives in Wimbledon and Raynes Park, boosting their hopes that they could win the Wimbledon seat at the next general election which must be called by 2024.
In Richmond, which the Lib Dems already controlled, the Conservatives were all but wiped out losing 10 seats including in areas like Barnes. Overall the Lib Dems gained nine seats to take their total to 48 in the borough with the Tories returning just one councillor - down from 11 in 2018.
The Lib Dems also held on to Sutton, which it has controlled since 1986 and was a top Tory target in London.
Outside the capital, the party gained four seats in West Oxfordshire - home to former Tory PM David Cameron - as the the Conservatives lost overall control of the council.
Sir Ed told BBC Radio 4’s Today Programme: “It’s looking like a historic night for the Lib Dems, particularly in Conservative heartlands like Wimbledon, West Oxfordshire and Cheadle.
“We are making big gains from the Conservatives, gains I think we can turn into seats at the next general election.
“It’s also a huge vote of confidence for Liberal Democrat run councils like Richmond where the Conservatives have all but disappeared.”
Polling expert Sir John Curtice said: “The Liberal Democrats were perhaps the surprise of the night. Perhaps we should have been aware they would make some progress, given the Conservatives were down.
“The truth is, in terms of share of the vote, their progress is relatively modest. It’s up a couple of points compared with local elections in 2018. It’s also up a couple of points compared with last year.”
On a night when the Conservatives lost flagship London boroughs like Westminster and Wandsworth to Labour, Tory strategists and MPs will be worried if the Lib Dems can build on their progress in south west London by making further gains in the capital’s commuter belt and the south west of England when more results are announced on Friday.
Speaking to the Standard, Sir Ed said that while there was anger at the partygate affair, the cost of living and the NHS had been the top two issues for voters in London.
“Partygate was there, but even if the Conservatives now get rid of Boris Johnson, they have still got a problem. They are not standing up for business of people’s families as they really feel the squeeze.”
The Lib Dems campaigned hard in Wimbledon in a bid to lay the ground for a major push for the constituency at the next Westminster parliamentary elections. The Tories won the seat by just 628 votes in ther 2019 general election.
Stephen Hammond, Conservative MP for Wimbledon, admitted on Friday morning as the results came through that the partygate scandal and the cost of living crisis had a big influence on voting.
“That ought to be a clarion bell ringing in Downing Street to make sure we are concentrating on the cost of living,” Mr Hammond said.
Asked about Mr Johnson’s future, he told the BBC: “I think he has to prove his integrity to the country.”
