Britain’s Prime Minister Boris Johnson and his fiancee Carrie Symonds arrive to vote for the local elections at a polling station in London
LONDON, May 9 (NNN-Xinhua) — As counting of votes in city halls and town halls across Britain continued into this weekend, British Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s Conservative Party was given plenty of reasons to celebrate while the local elections led to a string of crucial losses for Britain’s main opposition Labour Party.
The Conservatives won a parliamentary by-election in the north England constituency of Hartlepool, taking the seat from Labour for the first time since 1974 when the constituency was created.
Adding pains to Keir Starmer’s Labour Party, its losses in local elections continued to mount as vote results were announced one after another.
Johnson responded to the party’s successes, saying he would embark on a massive project of leveling up the country.
Meanwhile, Labour’s shadow home secretary, Nick Thomas-Symonds, said there will be a review of the party’s policies in a bid to reconnect with voters.
He said in places like Hartlepool and its traditional heartlands people do not now see Labour as answering their concerns.
Thomas-Symonds added: “That’s now what we have to reflect on and why we have to change.”
During Thursday’s elections, more than 5,000 seats were up for grabs in city hall and town hall elections, with the mayor of London and 12 provincial mayors along with police and crime commissioners also being elected.
Meanwhile, people in Scotland and Wales will also decide the shape of their devolved parliaments.
The blot on the electoral horizon for Johnson came in Scotland where Nicola Sturgeon’s pro-independence SNP made three gains on the first day of vote counting, with both the Conservatives and Labour losing seats in the Scottish Parliament.
With counting continuing over the weekend, the results indicate the SNP will stay in power at Holyrood for a fourth term, with Saturday determining whether it will be with a sought-after overall majority.
The Daily Telegraph newspaper in London cited Johnson as saying he has made it clear he would reject calls for a second Scottish independence referendum.
Johnson said: “I think a referendum in the current context is irresponsible and reckless.”
The newspaper said Johnson’s comments set up a political battle over the future of Britain that will loom large for the rest of the year. — NNN-XINHUA
