London local elections 2022: 'Real disgust' with PM at heart of Tory losses

The Tories had a bad night in Westminster

The local borough in which Downing Street and Buckingham Palace both sit has voted Labour councillors into power for the first time in its history.

Westminster has been "true blue" ever since the borough was formed in the 1960s.

Wandsworth, too, has long been Conservative. It was Margaret Thatcher's favourite council and pioneered her Right to Buy scheme.

So what has turned voters against the party they have previously favoured at the ballot box?

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Outside Clapham Junction railway station in the borough of Wandsworth, the tide of commuters is in full flow.

A good number of them say they haven't voted in the local elections; they didn't know one was happening; or they haven't seen the results.

But, some are pleased to wake up to the news the Conservatives have lost what has been a powerbase for the best part of half a century.

Annabel Hill believes people are getting sick of the Tories

Annabel Hill, 30, said political views in her family were mixed and some were die-hard Conservative Party supporters, but others had shifted alliance.

The teacher from Wandsworth said: "The Tories have been in power for 12 years and people are starting to get a bit sick of it.

"Anything that makes Boris Johnson's life that little bit more difficult has got to be a good thing.

"I think the (lockdown) parties did have an impact for some but, although you would hope that would cause people to turn their backs on the Conservatives, others will vote for them until the end, no matter what."

Ms Hill added she was shocked at the number of MPs under investigation for sexual offences and wanted to see more women in politics to "clean up" the system and "standing up for things that matter" like education.

Rachel Hadley said voters were disgusted with the behaviour of some Tory MPs

Rachel Hadley, from Wandsworth, said she was proud to have voted Labour and was "really pleased" with the result after decades of Conservative control.

Rushing into work, she said: "This shows a complete lack of faith in the Conservative government and a real disgust for how the Cabinet and Tories in general have behaved.

"Partygate is the obvious thing that had an impact on how people voted.

"I think issues around shipping refugees off to Rwanda and the poor response to people trying to escape Ukraine all made people think twice."

Travelling from Clapham Junction over the Thames to Victoria station crosses the boundary into the borough of Westminster, where grand townhouses mingle with tower blocks, with the Houses of Parliament peeping over the skyline.

Some lifelong Conservative supporters were shocked and upset to see the change from Conservative to Labour leadership for the first time in the borough's history.

Fiona Taylor is upset that local Tory councillors' work has been overshadowed by MPs' shenanigans

Fiona Taylor saying she was disappointed and thought voters had been "unfair" on the local Tory candidates, who had "kept the streets tidy, the bins collected, and council tax low".

She said: "I understand why this happened, because of Boris Johnson and the guys at the top, but I am just very, very sorry.

"Watching porn in Parliament is obviously disgusting and, at the highest level, people think they are out of touch, overprivileged liars, but that's not how Conservatives like our MP Nickie Aiken or the local party act."

However, others said it was clear voters' concerns over parliamentary leadership outweighed their views of local issues, including the over-budget Marble Arch Mound project.

Craig Storey has lost trust in Boris Johnson

Gardener Craig Storey, 62, said Partygate was the biggest issue for him and losing trust in Boris Johnson meant he changed his vote from Conservative to Labour this election.

"I just don't trust them," he said. "It's the lies and everything they say they didn't do and in the end had to admit to. I think it's disgusting, out of order and for him to deny it is even worse.

"He should have resigned a long time ago."

Westminster has been held by the Conservatives ever since the borough was formed

Waiting for her bus, Patricia said she had never voted for Labour before but they seemed to be an improvement locally and have a higher "moral standard" than the Conservatives nationally.

"I voted Labour for the first time because the Conservatives have been hopeless, to put it mildly, both in the city and the country," she said.

"From the couple of leaflets I had through the door Labour seemed to be an improvement and in touch with the real world, although Keir Starmer is a disappointment.

"The Mound is a waste of space, of course, but the bigger issue is the pavements are badly maintained and lots of people are tripping up and needing hospital treatment.

"My vote was considerably influenced by Boris Johnson because he lies all the time and I need a moral standard from my government and this lot have not got it."

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