Two main UK political parties, the ruling Conservative Party and the opposition Labour Party, are facing a backlash in local elections in England and Northern Ireland, with smaller parties gaining momentum amid Brexit deadlock, local media reported on Friday
MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 03rd May, 2019) Two main UK political parties, the ruling Conservative Party and the opposition Labour Party, are facing a backlash in local elections in England and Northern Ireland, with smaller parties gaining momentum amid Brexit deadlock, local media reported on Friday.
Citizens of England and Northern Ireland went to polls on Thursday to chose members of 248 out of 353 English local councils, six directly elected English mayors and members of all the 11 local councils in Northern Ireland.
As of 9 a.m. local time (08:00 GMT), results in around 110 English councils have been declared, and the results of the elections in the remaining English authorities are expected to be announced later on Friday, BBC specified. Meanwhile, the results of the Northern Irish elections are expected to be confirmed no earlier than late on Saturday, since a different electoral system is used in Northern Ireland.
According to the most recent data, the Conservative Party has lost 16 councils, winning two and losing 396 councilors in total, while the Labour Party has lost three councils and won one, losing as many as 81 councilors. Meanwhile, the Liberal Democrats party has won eight councils and 271 councilors, the Green Party has gained 36 councilors, and smaller and independent parties have gained 224 councilors in total.
The United Kingdom was initially set to leave the European Union on March 29, but the government failed to secure support for its divorce agreement before the deadline, which prompted London to seek an extension to avoid a no-deal scenario.
As a result of the European Council's special meeting, held on April 10, London received a flexible Brexit extension until October 31. The country is obliged to hold European elections in May if it does not leave by that time or withdraw without a deal on June 1.
