The parliamentary recess ought to buy Keir Starmer a bit of much-needed breathing space. But the Prime Minister has suffered an unwelcome rebuff today on his plans to reorganise local government. Amid protests at his plans, a legal showdown was planned for Thursday on proposals to delay 30 council elections across the North and South of England. Yet barely 72 hours ahead of that court deadline, officials threw in the towel, conceding that those elections could now go ahead. It marks a significant victory for Reform UK, who launched the lawsuit, and risks exacerbating the scale of Labour losses on 7 May.

Make no mistake: this is a blow to ministers and a boost to their critics

Make no mistake: this is a blow to ministers and a boost to their critics

Under the terms of the ruling, the government has agreed to pay Reform’s legal costs relating to the proceedings, which are understood to........

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