Labour remains in control of Cambridge City Council

Mike Davey, the Labour leader of Cambridge City Council, said it was a "fantastic" result for his party

Labour remains in control of Cambridge City Council, with the Green Party gaining one seat from the Liberal Democrats in the local elections.

Hugh Clough, who took the Newnham ward seat from former Lib Dem MEP Lucy Nethsingha, paid tribute to his predecessor, saying she had done "fantastic work" and had been "passionate about protecting out community".

Mike Davey, the Labour leader, said he was "over the moon" with the result as his party had not lost any seats.

Turnout was 37.8%, with 14 seats up for re-election out of a total of 42.

Hugh Clough said it was "a great privilege to be elected for Newnham, and I'm looking forward to doing my very best for all the residents"

Mr Clough said he was delighted to have won his seat.

"I'm really looking forward to it," he added.

He said the issues that had helped him win were potholes and the growth of the city.

"I think it's very important to pay tribute to the fantastic work that Lucy Nethsingha has done for the community in the past," he said.

"I'm known locally. I campaigned on being a local candidate with local experience and being passionate about protecting our community and community assets, and that's what I like to do going forward."

The counting of votes began at about 14:00 BST at the University Sports Centre, Cambridge

Mr Davey said: "The key thing that we've heard back is that they're pleased with the way we operate the council. We operate a prudent council, within budget, we make sure we build council homes, we're a green council and it's about making sure we deliver good basic services to people in the way they appreciate."

He said Labour was committed to tackling congestion and there were no plans to bring back proposals for a congestion charge.

Analysis

By Emma Howgego, BBC Radio Cambridgeshire political reporter

The loss of Lucy Nethsingha from Cambridge City Council will be a big blow to the Liberal Democrats. She was a well known and well liked member.

It’s not a surprise that the Greens took the seat after they took another seat in the Newnham ward in 2023. They have been campaigning hard in the area with a lot of time and energy put into it.

Lucy Nethsingha, who’s also a former MEP, will continue to be a big name for the Lib Dems in the city. She remains the county council leader and leads the Liberal Democrat group. Those seats are up for election in 2025.

The make-up of the council now stands at:

• Labour – 25

• Liberal Democrats – 10

• Green Party – 5

• Conservative – 1

• Independent – 1