Jump directly to the content

THE Tories are set to lose 700-plus seats in the local elections, the party’s projections show.

Even Jesus could not stop a second poll wipeout in a year, an ex-minister said.

Portrait of Kemi Badenoch.
1
The Tories are set to lose 700-plus seats in the local elections

On Thursday 1,641 councillors on 23 local authorities will be voted in across England.

Tories currently control 19 councils.

But a party source said: “It’s a very realistic scenario to imagine we might lose control of every single council.”

Reform UK are targeting Tory-run Lincolnshire.

READ MORE ON LOCAL ELECTIONS

YouGov polling shows Nigel Farage’s party is also on course to win two key mayoral elections on May 1 in Greater Lincolnshire, and Hull and East Yorkshire.

Senior Tories promise there is “no way in hell” they will try to topple leader Kemi Badenoch.

One insider said the party “still has PTSD” from ending the careers of so many PMs, with the election mauling from last July still fresh in the memory.

A former cabinet minister said: “We could have Jesus Christ himself leading us and we’d still flop this week.”

A key by-election will also be held in Runcorn & Helsby where Labour MP Mike Amesbury admitted assault.

Insiders say it is a close race with Reform.

Wes Streeting brutally slams Kemi AND Farage and demands Tories say sorry for how they ran the NHS in blistering attack
Topics