Tony Travers: London local election result could trigger housebuilding slump Property The result of the forthcoming local elections could trigger a further slump in housebuilding in the capital as a shake-up in council composition obstructs development plans. Voters head to the polls in every London borough today, with polling suggesting Labour is on course to shed dozens of seats and lose its grip on the capital, [...]
However London votes today, not enough will change Opinion Whether Labour, Tory, Lib Dem, Greens, or Reform – all local politicians are all incentivised by the system that elects them. Every party promises to protect “green spaces”, all councillors perform lip service towards supporting affordable homes, while campaigning vociferously against what they arbitrarily determine to be “inappropriate development”, says Tom Harwood While London (and [...]
Is it time to make voting compulsory? Opinion Low turnout at elections allows anti-growth minorities to dictate policy. Diluting that by ensuring all eligible voices are heard equally would return the incentives to deliver for all in our economy, says Charles White In 2024, Labour told the public: “Sustained economic growth is the only route to improving the prosperity of our country and [...]
London local elections 2026: Who will win in Waltham Forest? May 6, 2026 After wrestling over Waltham Forest since the borough was created, Labour and the Conservatives now face a new threat from the Greens. The Conservatives and Labour have played pass the parcel with Waltham Forest since its inception in 1965. Control of the borough has switched as much as eight times since its formation in 1965, [...]
London local elections 2026: Who will win in Southwark? May 6, 2026 A divided borough may end up under no overall control, with Lib Dems faring well in the prosperous north, while social housing heartlands stick with Labour, which has struggled with local infighting and defections to the Greens. From the vantage point of the Shard, at the tip of Southwark, the borough changes dramatically as it [...]
London local elections 2026: Who will win in Richmond upon Thames? May 6, 2026 Boasting the best quality of life in London, the Lib Dems are dominant and Ed Davey hopes to strengthen control of the borough. But a back-to-basics campaign from the Greens and high taxes are also on the agenda. Richmond, a borough of leafy avenues, stunning nature and quaint pubs is as close to an ideal [...]
London local elections 2026: Who will win Redbridge? May 6, 2026 A rise in support of Nigel Farage’s Reform will be tested in the north of a borough dominated elsewhere by Labour which faces its own fight from the left. Results will be closely watched by Wes Streeting, whose parliamentary constituency is on the patch. Redbridge is a complex constituency. Labour is battling the Greens to [...]
London local elections 2026: Who will win in Newham? May 6, 2026 What could have become the heartlands for Jeremy Corbyn’s Your Party may represent the shortcomings of the former Labour leader’s new venture, as well as the impact of travails of his old comrades in Westminster. Newham is Jeremy Corbyn’s worst nightmare. A fertile seat for progressive politics, almost all of its wards have been Labour-dominated [...]
London local elections 2026: Who will win in Merton? May 6, 2026 The Lib Dems’ serve up a “Gail’s strategy” to try and ace the vote in Wimbledon’s borough, where calls for affordable homes are rallying support and a local resident’s group has won seats. In Merton, home of the Wimbledon Championships, the Liberal Democrats have their best chance of smashing an ace past the Labour incumbents. [...]
London local elections 2026: Who will win in Lewisham? May 6, 2026 After a Labour landslide last time around, the red wall to the south of the Thames could crack under a Green onslaught, with housing the key local issue in what has traditionally been a two-way battleground between Labour and the Conservatives. Lewisham Council offers a window into another world. The borough’s last local elections brought [...]