Council by-elections: Shock as Tories snatch Bolton seat from Labour

Labour lost a northern seat to the Tories in the latest round of council by-elections.

Jeremy Corbyn’s party boosted its share of the vote in the Bolton ward but still saw the Tories triumph after the governing party posted a bigger increase in its number of backers.

The Tories easily held their seat in Milton Keynes where both they and Labour saw their vote share increase.

Just four by-elections were held last night. Overall the Tories gained one and held one, Labour lost one, and the Lib Dems held one while in Bournemouth an independent made a gain at the expense of another unaligned candidate, according to the BritainElects.

Hulton (Bolton)

Conservative gain from Labour

Conservative: 49.4 per cent (+16.7)

Labour: 40.1 per cent (+3)

UKIP: 6.5 per cent (-18)

Lib Dems: 2.3 per cent (-0.2)

Greens: 1.8 per cent (-1.5)

Throop & Muscliff (Bournemouth)

Independent gain from independent

Independent (Wilson): 31.3 per cent (+31.3)

Conserative: 30 per cent (+8.2)

Labour: 23.6 per cent (+15.8)

Independent (Lucas): 6.9 per cent (+6.9)

Lib Dems: 6.3 per cent (+6.3)

Greens: 1.9 per cent (-5)

No other independents (-52) and UKIP (-11.5) as previously.

Downhall & Rawreth (Rochford)

Lib Dem hold

Lib Dems: 77 per cent (+16.6)

Conservative: 23 per cent (+6.4)

No Labour (-7.9) and Rochford District Residents (-15.2) as previously.

Newport Pagnell North and Hanslope (Milton Keynes)

Conservative hold

Conservative: 53 per cent (+15.3)

Labour: 24.8 per cent (+11.7)

Lib Dems: 22.2 per cent (+6.8)

No UKIP (-23.9) and Greens (-9.9) as previously.