There’s a slight feeling of 1990 to the way the Tories are selling the early local election results. Back then, party chairman Kenneth Baker managed to spin victory into defeat. By concentrating the media’s attention on Conservative holds in Wandsworth and Westminster, he turned perceptions of a bad night for the government on its head. It was a masterclass in political PR.

Kemi Badenoch is entitled to feel a measure of relief. But relief is where it should end. The party’s gains have come exclusively at the expense of Labour during a period of record unpopularity for Sir Keir Starmer

Kemi Badenoch is entitled to feel a measure of relief. But relief is where it should end. The party’s gains have come exclusively at the expense of Labour during a period of record unpopularity for Sir Keir Starmer

Fast forward 36 years, and his modern equivalent Kevin Hollinrake is attempting to pull off the same trick. While the surge of Reform across much of England is undoubtedly bad news for Kemi Badenoch, the capital provides her with at least a glimmer of hope. Overnight, the Conservatives won back the symbolically significant Westminster City Council from Labour. Having been under Tory control since its creation in 1965, its loss to........

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