Council leader loses seat as Reform strikes ahead

The Labour leader of Bradford Council lost her seat to Reform UK in the local elections, with the count set to continue into a second day.

Twenty of the 30 electoral wards were announced on Friday with further results expected on Saturday.

Council leader Susan Hinchcliffe, who has been in the role for a decade, thanked her Labour colleagues and said she was very proud of the legacy she leaves behind.

"It's disappointing for Labour councillors who have worked so hard and are absolute heroes for the district," she said.

"No matter what the result is today, the answer is not Nigel Farage."

She said she was proud of the projects she had overseen as leader, such as City of Culture and Bradford Live, but "you can't beat a national swing".

"They [voters] wanted to send a message nationally, and they have done that," she said.

The ward was won by Reform UK councillors Sally Jane Birch, Stephen Broadbent and Chris Howlett.

Reform UK campaign manager Oliver Williams said: "We're absolutely over the moon.

"We've worked this really hard and the message from the doorstep really is that people want change."

Bradford Greens leader Matt Edwards kept his seat in Holmewood and Bierley.

Asked if his party's early success could be the start of a good day, Edwards said: "We shall see. Five-party politics is something new for all of us and there's a lot that can change."

Deputy council leader Imran Khan kept his seat in Bowling and Barkerend alongside his Labour colleagues Rizwana Jamil and Hassan Khan.

The Conservative Party did better than expected, including three seats in Ilkley and Addingham, and three in the Worth Valley including local leader Rebecca Poulson.

She said she was "absolutely delighted".

"It's testament that we work as a team in the Worth Valley, we work with Robbie [Moore] as our MP and we get stuck in and get stuff done."

The Greens did not do as well as expected, only securing seven seats on Friday and the independents only took two seats, one in Bingley East and another in Keighley Central.

However, with many inner-city wards being counted on Saturday, the picture could change dramatically.

Results are still to come in Bradford Moor, Little Horton, Great Horton, Royds, Wibsey and Odsal, Heaton and Frizinghall, Manningham and Toller.

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