Elections results 2022: Labour retain control of Sunderland City Council

Sunderland Council leader Graeme Miller said he believed the "cycle of losing seats" had ended

Labour has retained control of Sunderland City Council in the local elections.

The party, which has run the council since its formation in 1974, only had to lose six seats to see its controlling majority wiped out.

In the event, it only lost one - as did the Conservatives - to the Lib Dems.

One third of seats were also up for grabs at Gateshead, Newcastle, North Tyneside and South Tyneside councils, all of which were held by Labour.

Follow the latest election updates and reaction

The Greens gained three seats on South Tyneside Council

In Newcastle, the Lib Dems gained a seat and Labour lost one, but with a total of 51 out of 78 Labour has a majority.

The Green Party made gains in South Tyneside, winning three seats, giving it a total of six out of 54 - Labour holds 41.

There was no overall change at North Tyneside Council, with Labour retaining its 51 seats out of 60.

The big shock was the Conservative group leader Sean Brockbank losing his seat - Monkseaton South - to Labour.

At Gateshead Council, Labour lost one seat to the Lib Dems, who also gained a seat from an independent, but otherwise kept its majority, holding 20 seats to leave it with a total of 51 councillors out of 66.

Analysis: Labour holds on in the North East

By Richard Moss, Political Correspondent North East and Cumbria

Labour started the night perilously perched in Sunderland. Having lost 19 seats in the last two elections, they were just six more defeats from losing overall control. But in the end, even if they didn't begin to claw seats back, they at least stopped the rot.

One seat fell to the Lib Dems, but the Conservatives failed to make any gains. And crucially council leader Graeme Miller held on despite a Tory campaign which even featured a visit by Boris Johnson to his Washington ward.

The Conservatives did win a Labour seat in North Tyneside, but also lost one - their group leader Sean Brockbank the casualty. As he had called for the Prime Minister to resign over partygate, he may well feel pretty sore.

Labour did suffer in South Tyneside as they lost four seats for the second year in a row. They remain firmly in control but The Green Party continue to build a bridgehead, doubling their representation to six councillors.

But Labour's dominance in Newcastle remained unshaken. The Lib Dems took one seat from them, but there was little sign that the pre-poll turbulent exit of long-term leader Nick Forbes had caused any damage.

Graeme Miller, Labour leader of Sunderland Council, said: "We are now at the end of the cycle of losing seats, I genuinely believe that.

"We've listened and talked to residents to find out what was important for them and the council is delivering now on all of that.

"But the key thing is trust, we are rebuilding trust - people are genuinely starting to consider us as a party of leadership again.

"That's down to Keir Starmer... the whole party just starting to talk to people and not take it for granted, which possibly we may have done a little bit of in the past."

The leader of Conservatives in Sunderland has blamed "partygate" for its lack of gains

The leader of the Conservatives on Sunderland Council, Antony Mullen, told BBC Radio 4 why he believes his party failed to make gains there.

"It's been partygate - it's suppressed our turnout," he said, referring to the controversy over lockdown parties in Downing Street and Whitehall.

Some people had made "negative comments about Boris Johnson" while he was out campaigning locally, and "quite clearly that's the only thing that has changed nationally that has affected this".

He added: "The best chance of reviving the Conservative Party's fortunes will be with a new leader.

"If there is no improvement in the party's reputation, then clearly something has to change."

'In business'

In Newcastle Labour held on to its majority, with 51 out of 78 councillors.

One of them was the Arthur's Hill ward, previously held by Labour council leader Nick Forbes before his shock deselection by the party in favour of activist Abdul Samad, who retained the seat.

However, the Lib Dems, who have 21 seats, said they were going in the "right direction".

The group's leader Nick Cott said: "We are in business, we will take control of this council.

"We are putting measures in place so that we can get there in the next few years."