Reform UK posts record local-election gains as humiliated Starmer refuses to step down
Nigel Farage's Reform UK swept hundreds of council seats in English local elections while Labour suffered one of its worst-ever results. Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer said he would not walk away from the job.
Reform UK won about 580 council seats with surprise victories in former Labour strongholds across northern England and Wales. The party took outright control of councils such as Lincolnshire and Durham.
Labour lost 412 seats and slipped to second place in Wales for the first time. Speaking outside Downing Street, Sir Keir Starmer said he had 'heard the message at the ballot box' but would not resign. Questions persist over Chancellor Rachel Reeves's future.
Sterling slipped 0.4% against the dollar in Frankfurt trading to 1.2480, while the FTSE 100 ended the week flat. Goldman Sachs said the government would now face pressure to harden its welfare and migration policies, complicating fiscal headroom ahead of the autumn budget.
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