Lib Dems win Dorset Council from Conservatives

Dorset Council's count was held in Weymouth

The Liberal Democrats have taken control of Dorset Council following the local elections.

Dorset had its last election five years ago in 2019, when the authority was formed.

It was previously run by a Conservative administration, which went into this election with 43 seats.

Counting for Dorset's next Police and Crime Commissioner was taking place on Saturday morning, with the result expected later in the afternoon.

The Lib Dems now have 42 seats, while the Conservatives have 30 and the Greens have four.

Labour has two seats on the council and four other seats are held by Independent or other parties.

Nick Ireland, leader of the Liberal Democrat group, said the results show "we work hard for our residents"

Dorset Council said the overall turnout for the poll was 33.25%.

As the results began to emerge on Friday, Nick Ireland, leader of the Liberal Democrat group, said: "We work hard for our residents and it's shown today.

"We are promising things for our residents and we plan to deliver on them, such as providing housing that real people can afford, and we don't get that at the moment - that's one of our main things.

"It's changed for Dorset."