Worcester council election results: Conservatives lose control in city

Tory leader Marc Bayliss (left) was seen leaving the Guildhall in Worcester before the counting had started

The Conservatives have lost control of Worcester City Council, with leader Marc Bayliss declaring it a "bad night" for the party.

Three losses to Labour, the Green Party and the Liberal Democrats left no party with a majority and the council hung.

Mr Bayliss left the Guildhall early, before counting had even begun.

The Tories kept control of Redditch Borough Council but leader Matt Dormer said it had been "tough" on the doorsteps.

The party now hold 20 seats for Redditch, but Labour gained three from the Conservatives, beating ex-deputy leader Mike Rouse in Church Hill, and deputy leader Gemma Monaco in Batchley and Brockhill.

Speaking to the BBC at the Worcester count, Mr Bayliss said Partygate - gatherings held in and around Downing Street during Covid lockdowns - had been the main national issue raised by voters.

Mr Bayliss said people had "given their verdict on the government".

"I think it is fair to say we are having a bad night," he told the BBC as the ballot papers were starting to be counted.

The Green Party, which now has six councillors, will now meet to discuss which party they will work with to run the council.

The turnout of voters in Worcester was 35%, with the total number of votes cast totalling 22,431.

Analysis from political reporter James Pearson at the Guildhall

It's been a bad night for the Conservatives in Worcester. They've lost control of the city council, which they'd held with a slim majority after an exceptional night last May.

However, they remain the largest party.

The Tories lost three seats, two to the Greens in St Peter's Parish Ward and Battenhall and one to Labour in Nunnery.

But it could have been worse. Labour came within 23 votes of taking the normally safe Tory seat of Bedwardine.

The Greens now hold the balance of power in the city.

They'll decide as a group this weekend whether to back Marc Bayliss as leader and to resume power-sharing, or to reach a new coalition, possibly with Labour and the Lib Dems.

• POSTCODE SEARCH: What are the results in my area?