What we’ve heard from party leaders about results in Englandpublished at 12:55 BST
Ben Hatton
Live reporter
We’re more than a fifth of the way through the count in England’s council elections.
We’ve now heard from all the leaders of the main Westminster parties. Here’s a quick overview:
Labour: Starmer won’t ‘walk away’ after ‘very tough’ results
Image source, PA Media
“There’s no sugarcoating it,” Starmer says, after big losses for Labour. “When voters send a message like this we must reflect and we must respond,” he says, but adds he’s not “going to walk away and plunge the country into chaos”.
Reform UK: Farage hails ‘historic shift’
Image source, EPA
“It’s a big, big day, not just for our party, but for a complete reshaping of British politics in every way,” the Reform UK leader says. He says the trend so far shows Labour is being “wiped out” by his party, and he’s also been talking up his prospects in Conservative heartland seats due later.
Conservatives: Badenoch says ‘good strategy takes time’
Image source, EPA
“I’m not saying that we’re there yet. I’m not saying that the results are perfect,” the Conservative leader says, adding ” good strategy takes time”. But Badenoch says there are “signs of renewal” for her party and she’s “very proud” of the results.
Lib Dems: ‘Great results to come’
Image source, Getty Images
The Lib Dem leader says his party is “feeling very bullish”, adding they’ve “still got great results to come”. “Both the Conservatives and Labour need to smell the coffee – the old parties are out,” he says.
Green Party: Two-party politics ‘dead’ and ‘buried’
Image source, ReutersImage caption,
Polanski alongside Hackney’s new directly elected mayor, Zoë Garbett
Party leader Zack Polanski says two-party politics “is not just dying, it is dead and it is buried”. He also hails the party securing its first directly elected mayor, in Hackney, east London, as a “historic victory”.
Counting began in Scotland and Wales earlier this morning – we’ll have results and reaction from those parliamentary elections throughout the day.
