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Conservatives making large gains Tories 'winning across England'
(40 minutes later)
The Tories have gained six councils in the English local elections so far. Conservative leader David Cameron has said his party's performance in the local elections show it can win in "every part of the country".
The Tories have taken Staffordshire, Devon, Somerset, Warwickshire and Derbyshire and won power at Central Bedfordshire Council. So far the Tories have taken councils from Labour and the Lib Dems including Derbyshire, run by Labour since 1981.
The Lib Dems had a more mixed day but took Bristol. Labour have lost control of Staffordshire and Lancashire on what is proving a poor day for them. The Lib Dems have won control in Bristol while Labour has lost control of all of its four councils.
The BBC's estimated projected national vote share puts the Tories on 38%, Labour on 23% and the Lib Dems on 28%. Labour deputy Harriet Harman admitted the results were "disappointing" but said the party would learn from them.
Labour has lost overall control of Derbyshire to the Conservatives - local Labour officials blamed the furore over MPs' expenses. So far the Conservatives have taken Staffordshire, Lancashire and Derbyshire from Labour - which had run all three since 1981 - as well as Devon and Somerset from the Lib Dems.
David Cameron says people are yearning for an alternative Projected vote share
Labour's Lancashire losses They also took Warwickshire from no overall control and took power in the new Central Bedfordshire unitary authority, winning 54 seats on the council. The Lib Dems took 11, while Labour failed to win a seat.
In Staffordshire, where the party had a majority of just one seat, the Conservatives have already won enough seats - 32 - to guarantee them overall control.
The BBC's political research unit editor David Cowling said it looked like there was a big drop in the Labour vote across the country with some of its long-term councillors being felled.
RESULTS SO FAR Devon County: Tory winSomerset County: Tory winBristol City: Lib Dems win controlStaffs County: Labour expects to lose controlDerbyshire: Labour expected to lose controlLancashire: Labour set to lose controlCentral Beds: Tories take controlLincs: Tories increase majorityEssex: Tories hold Labour fears Staffordshire loss Lib Dems take control of Bristol
In Lancashire too, Labour looks set to lose control. The Conservatives are just one seat away from taking overall control. Seats lost by Labour include one to the British National Party - the BNP's first county council seat in England.
The Labour leader of the council, Hazel Harding, has lost her seat to the Conservatives.
The Tories have also taken overall control of Somerset County Council and Devon County Council from the Lib Dems.
In Exeter David Cameron told Conservative activists: "You can see the Conservative Party, strong, united and positive, winning in every part of our country.
"And it has never been more necessary to be that strong voice for change. We need a party that is going to bring thrift to our government, that is going to bring responsibility to our society, and right now is going to clean up our politics."
The Conservatives have also retained control of Hampshire, Lincolnshire, Leicestershire and Essex county councils and gained Warwickshire from no overall control
'Patchwork' results
In Bristol, the Lib Dems and Tories gained four seats each, all at the expense of Labour. The Lib Dems have 36 councillors, giving them an overall majority in the city.
Party leader Nick Clegg said this was the beginning of a "complete transformation of city politics" with his party taking urban seats off Labour.
Harman on 'disappointing results'
He admitted it looked like the Lib Dems were facing a strong challenge from the Tories in the rural south west but said they had made "spectacular gains against Labour in Bristol" and in their northern heartlands in Burnley.
And he said they were taking seats in the south east - including Tory party chairman Eric Pickles' own seat.
"It's a bit of a patchwork - a bit of a setback in the south west but very spectacular gains elsewhere," Mr Clegg said.
'Very tough'
The Conservatives took power in the new Central Bedfordshire unitary authority, winning 54 seats on the council. The Lib Dems took 11, while Labour failed to win a seat.
In Lincolnshire, the Tories gained 14 seats - to take their total number to 60 - while the number of Labour councillors fell from 19 to just four.
According to the BBC's estimated projected national vote share - the Conservatives are on 38%, Labour on 23%, the Lib Dems on 28% and other parties on 11%.According to the BBC's estimated projected national vote share - the Conservatives are on 38%, Labour on 23%, the Lib Dems on 28% and other parties on 11%.
He's wrong, we have been out campaigning for the last few weeks as you would expect John Healey on John Prescott Tories take hold of Central Beds Tories romp home in Lincolnshire He's wrong, we have been out campaigning for the last few weeks as you would expect John Healey on John Prescott href="/1/hi/uk_politics/8085558.stm">Labour loses council strongholds class="" href="/1/hi/england/beds/bucks/herts/8082214.stm">Tories take hold of Central Beds Tories romp home in Lincolnshire
It suggests the Tories and Lib Dems are doing as well as they did in 2004 while Labour is three points down and 1% lower than last year's record low projection.It suggests the Tories and Lib Dems are doing as well as they did in 2004 while Labour is three points down and 1% lower than last year's record low projection.
The Conservatives' projection is down on the 44% they got last year - possibly partly due to the increase in votes for the minor parties.The Conservatives' projection is down on the 44% they got last year - possibly partly due to the increase in votes for the minor parties.
Minister Tessa Jowell told the BBC: "These are very bad results and I'm very sorry for the good Labour councillors who have lost their seats this time. Mr Cameron said he was delighted with the result in Somerset, which had been a Tory target.
"Of course they are very bad results, there is no point in pretending otherwise. He told the BBC the results showed people wanted a "strong and positive and united alternative" to the government and were seeing the Conservatives as that alternative.
"I think this has been a highly unusual set of elections and what to some extent both Labour and the Tories are seeing is a rejection of what people regard as the political establishment." 'Fresh start'
But she said she was convinced the party could bounce back. "Across the country what's remarkable about these figures and what shines out is it's the Conservative Party winning in every part of the country," he said.
Meanwhile local government minister John Healey has dismissed criticism of the local government and European election campaign on John Prescott's blog. "Here in the south west, against the Lib Dems, but in the Midlands against Labour and in the north west we are doing very well in Lancashire against Labour as well."
The former deputy PM accused Harriet Harman and other ministers of running a "non campaign" and of being "resigned to defeat". He said the government was in "near collapse" and people wanted a "fresh start".
But Mr Healey told the BBC: "He's wrong, we have been out campaigning for the last few weeks as you would expect." Harman on 'disappointing results'
'Fed up' Professor John Curtice of Strathclyde University said on average the Conservatives' share of the vote was up by just over four points in the south of England and by 6 points in the Midlands.
He said campaigns in local areas had been "very strong" but had been "overwhelmed" by the expenses row and voters were using them as a referendum on personalities at Westminster. He said the party also seemed to be advancing well in the north England, although there were fewer seats being contested on which to base an estimate.
But the Conservative frontbencher Liam Fox told the BBC: "It's very clear that the voters are sending out a clear signal - they are fed up with Labour." The Lib Dems took Bristol but lost Somerset and Devon to the Tories. However according to the BBC's projected national vote share, they are well ahead of Labour - on 28% compared to Labour's 23%.
He said it was too early to say how the Conservatives had done but said: "We are making big gains from Cumbria to Devon at the moment - some of those gains are really spectacular." 'Resigned to defeat'
Labour has lost control of Staffordshire, Derbyshire and Lancashire and looks set to lose control of its only remaining council - Nottinghamshire - on what is proving a poor day for them.
Labour's deputy leader, Harriet Harman, told reporters: "I think we're disappointed about the election results, but we'll learn lessons about it and I think it has a lot to do with the concern people have got about expenses."
She was strongly criticised by former deputy prime minister John Prescott, who accused her and other ministers of running a "non campaign" and of being "resigned to defeat".
Lib Dem leader Nick Clegg on losses and gains in the local electionsLib Dem leader Nick Clegg on losses and gains in the local elections
But that was dismissed by local government minister John Healey told the BBC: "He's wrong, we have been out campaigning for the last few weeks as you would expect."
He said campaigns in local areas had been "very strong" but had been "overwhelmed" by the expenses row and voters were using them as a referendum on personalities at Westminster.
The Conservatives have also retained control of Hampshire, Lincolnshire, Leicestershire and Essex county councils and gained Warwickshire from no overall control
'Spectacular gains'
In Bristol, the Lib Dems and Tories gained four seats each, all at the expense of Labour. The Lib Dems have 36 councillors, giving them an overall majority in the city.
Party leader Nick Clegg hailed "spectacular gains" in Bristol said this was the beginning of a "complete transformation of city politics" with his party taking urban seats off Labour.
But he admitted it looked like the Lib Dems were facing a strong challenge from the Tories in the rural south west.
"It's a bit of a patchwork - a bit of a setback in the south west but very spectacular gains elsewhere," Mr Clegg said.
His colleague Chris Huhne added: "What I think is coming out of the projected national vote share is that both Labour and the Conservatives have been hit since last year and we are indeed making gains."
Meanwhile UKIP have won four county council seats - three in Staffordshire and one in Norfolk - and the British National Party have won two in Lancashire and Leicestershire. The Greens have won three seats - in Gloucestershire, Devon and Cambridgeshire.
The English Democrats, who campaign for an English Parliament, have also had a win in Doncaster, where their candidate Peter Davies was elected mayor. The Tory and Labour candidates were knocked out in the first round.
In Hartlepool, independent Stuart Drummond was re-elected for a third term as mayor. The former Hartlepool United mascot - known as H'Angus the Monkey - first won office in 2002.In Hartlepool, independent Stuart Drummond was re-elected for a third term as mayor. The former Hartlepool United mascot - known as H'Angus the Monkey - first won office in 2002.
In Doncaster, where the council's social services department has been under fire following the deaths of seven children, English Democrat candidate Peter Davies was elected mayor. The Tory and Labour candidates were knocked out in the first round. Turnout appears to have been mixed.
Turnout appears to have been mixed. Provisional figures from the Doncaster mayoral election suggest 35.8% of voters took part - down from 54% in 2005. In Staffordshire turnout is also estimated at 31% so far. But in Leicestershire results have been delayed by a "higher than expected" turnout. Provisional figures from the Doncaster mayoral election suggest 35.8% of voters took part - down from 54% in 2005. In Staffordshire turnout is also estimated at 31% so far. But in Leicestershire results were delayed by a "higher than expected" turnout.
In the European Parliament elections, the UK Independence Party has complained about the way ballot papers were folded, while there were mixed reports of turnout.
The Electoral Commission was forced to issue an alert asking polling station staff not to fold ballot papers.
This followed complaints that parties listed lower on the alphabetical ballot papers were hidden when first unfolded.
A commission spokesman told the BBC it issued the alert after talking to returning officers and the UK Independence Party, who brought the issue to their attention.
The European results will be declared on Sunday from 2100 BST. They are delayed because voting is carried out in 27 EU countries over four days.