Labour retains overall control of Leeds

Labour retained its overall control of Leeds

Labour has retained overall control of Leeds City Council, ending the day still with 61 of the 99 seats.

Despite losing in Armley, Gipton & Harehills and Headingley & Hyde Park to the Greens and Middleton Park to the SDP, it gained seats in Ardsley & Robin Hood, Calverley & Farsley, Farnley & Wortley and Guiseley & Rawdon.

Among those to lose their seats was the outgoing Lord Mayor Al Garthwaite.

The turnout figure for the city was 34.24%.

Council leader James Lewis said the gains were a "real endorsement of our work as a Labour administration in Leeds".

He added: "The General Election will be bad news for the Conservatives and we need to get on with that election. The last thing people want is for that to be dragged out for months and months and months."

SDP candidate Rob Chesterfield took Middleton Park ward with 1,882 votes compared to Labour's 1,638 - giving the party all three seats in the ward.

He told the Local Democracy Reporting Service: “The people of Middleton and Belle Isle have put their trust in me. For those that didn’t, I am here to represent you all.”

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