By Chris Doyle

Were the local elections held in England last Thursday another seminal moment in British politics? The barnstorming success of the far-right populist Reform UK party, which gained 677 council seats, threatens to shatter the two-party system that has dominated the country’s politics for more than a century.

Both the governing Labour Party and the opposition Conservative Party had a bruising night. Neither of these two establishment behemoths appealed to voters, meaning seismic challenges to their parties and leaderships. Of course, it is not just in Britain that traditional parties have suffered in recent years. Where are the French Republicans and the Socialist Party? And in the US, the traditional Republican Party has effectively collapsed and been taken over by Donald Trump’s “Make America Great Again” movement.

Anti-establishment parties are on the rise, to the left and the right, across Europe. About a third of Europeans now vote for nontraditional parties. Party allegiance is waning and voter trends are more changeable. It suggests widespread dissatisfaction at a time of economic crisis and identity politics. So, what is happening in Britain is far from unique.

The question........

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