purpose, overarching picture and the purpose, the purpose is to serve our country, this is the last stop before the general election and we have made significant and very real progress. many of them mayoral races declaring this afternoon are expected to be comfortable for labour. in liverpool city region the party held its first post of the day. but in the west midlands the party has been challenged by an independent candidate over its stance on gaza. one factor that has led to suggestions that conservative mayor andy street may hang on. if the conservatives win in the west midlands it would further shore up rishi sunak�*s position here until a general election. while these have been a terrible set of results for the prime minister, any sense that his backbenchers are about to get rid of him has completely gone. the party's trying to insist it's all still to play for.

no one should call this one too early. you wouldn't call a premier league football match after about 30 minutes. and there's a lot more people who've got their view, too. except you are at the end of you are at the end of a government term. that's fair. but people make a choice at the election, a very clear choice. who's going to walk through the door of number ten the following morning. in dorset, the conservatives lost control of the council to the liberal democrats, who are second in terms of the number of seats won overall. but in some places, labourface a challenge from the greens. this is bristol, where they became the biggest party on the council, picking up every single seat in what will be one of their top target constituencies. these are huge steps forward for the green party. there's now nine councils across the country where we're the largest party. large numbers of councils where greens are part of the ruling administration, often working with other parties, which we're very happy to do. with counting under way in london, there are still big results to come through, but the winners and losers of this round of elections are now becoming clear.

hannah miller, bbc news. let's go back to my colleague rajini vaidyanathan who is at the count in birmingham. all eyes on whether andy street can hold on for the conservatives. what is the latest there? ~ . , ., conservatives. what is the latest there? . , ., ., there? we have 'ust had an announcement _ there? we have just had an announcement here - there? we have just had an announcement here on - there? we have just had an i announcement here on stage there? we have just had an - announcement here on stage behind saying that it looks like they have concluded the count here in birmingham. there were a number of counts across the west midlands region, this isjust the one in birmingham city, and they said they will now basically feed that into the wider regional count. they still can't tell us when exactly that result might come but it does give you a sign of the speed and progress they have made here because earlier when we got here people furiously counting those yellow ballot papers that arrived in black plastic boxes. i was talking to our political editor chris mason early and he

described this as a cathedral of democracy come up—and—down the country people counting votes and we have the privilege of being here and seeing it up close and personal. let's talk about the actual vote here. andy street, the conservative incumbent mayor is hoping for a third term here. in many ways he has distanced himself from the national conservative party. you have not seen much mention of the conservatives on his election literature throughout this campaign. he has been banking on brand andy and in many ways when andy street first became the mayor of the west midlands back in 2017 he was the anti—politician he had come from john lewis, a corporate background command had promised to breathe new life into this region. his main opposition, the labour party, says his record doesn't stand firm enough and they say that they would be the party to run the region. through the campaign, the polls have been extremely close between the two leading candidates, and i was

speaking to sources from both the conservative side and the labour side here. the conservatives telling me that they genuinely think that this race is too close to call. a similar message from the labour party who, when i spoke to them, said they think it is neck and neck so far. that really does make this a very exciting and interesting race. a few other things to point out, for andy street he obviously wants to win a third term, he is banking on his personal brand here. and in some ways the mayoral contests are slightly different because they don't necessarily tell you what might happen nationally in a general election because much of it comes down to the figurehead, that individual who is standing to be the mayor, who might already be the mayor, who might already be the mayor, seeking re—election. so much of the wider political factors don't always come into play. andy street is well known in this region and he has held the post twice before. but of course, if he wins this will be a success for rishi sunak, following a day and a half or so of pretty

miserable results nationally across the country in councils for the conservative party. of course, the conservatives did hold on the mayoral seat in tees valley, ben houchen there, again another example of a local man being very popular locally, winning that again. if labour managed to win here, also a huge, notable victory for them if they manage to win because it will show that sir keir starmer�*s labour party does have momentum going into a general election, if they are able to unseat someone who has held that post here twice already. that is why people are watching this so closely. that is why there is so much at stake here. for the labour party there has been some concern that an independent candidate here who has been campaigning on the platform of gaza may have drawn some support away from the labour party. we have seenin away from the labour party. we have seen in other parts of the country

that some muslim voters who might naturally lean towards the labour party have decided to either stay away or not vote for them because of what they see as sir keir starmer�*s failure to immediately call for a ceasefire following the hamas attacks in october. so there are lots of issues that have played on the national level, but of course when it comes to a mayoral election, it's also about what voters care about, theirfirst it's also about what voters care about, their first and it's also about what voters care about, theirfirst and hear a lot of that has been about travel, for example, but also the of living. joining me now is raj kandola from the birmingham chambers of commerce. we are going to discuss the issue of the cost of living and business and trade here which has been a big talking point in this mayoral campaign. welcome to bbc news, raj. thank you for having me. just campaign. welcome to bbc news, ra'. thank you for having me.�* thank you for having me. just tell us what issues _ thank you for having me. just tell us what issues have _ thank you for having me. just tell us what issues have been - thank you for having me. just tell us what issues have been at - thank you for having me. just tell| us what issues have been at stake here when it comes to the economy. i

think it is quite clear, from our perspective we set up a business commission in the last six months made up of private sector leaders, leading academics from different universities from across the region, with the express intention to really understand what businesses see as barriers to growth and what interventions they want to see from regional and national actors. there are a number of factors which were cited as concerns, and cost pressures is definitely one of them, definitely linked to labour market shortages, supply change disruption for those trading overseas but also utility costs is still a big thing for a number of smes in particular. at the same time, there is lots of concern about stomach around the transport networks, how we move people around the city and goods around the city more effectively. and then also businesses are trying to get their heads around technology in areas such as artificial intelligence and net zero. this is where the role of a mayor is really important. the mayor has formal powers and some of these areas such as transport and economic

development and skills. it is also the informal power, the softer power than mayor employers as well, lobbying government to help alleviate some of the cost pressures but also really standing up for the region on the international stage, drumming up investment and attracting new businesses to the region is also a really vital role. was there a particular candidate that offered a solution that your chamber or businesses found... we are going to leave you now and go to bexley and bromley, the london mayoral constituency, let's listen in. ., mayoral constituency, let's listen in, ., �* ., mayoral constituency, let's listen in. count binface for mayor of london, 1260 _ in. count binface for mayor of london, 1260 votes. - in. count binface for mayor of london, 1260 votes. rob - in. count binface for mayor of - london, 1260 votes. rob blackie, liberal_ london, 1260 votes. rob blackie, liberal democrat, 7663. natalie campbell, independent, 2552. howard cox, reform uk, london deserves better, _ cox, reform uk, london deserves

better, 3478. amy gallagher, social democratic— better, 3478. amy gallagher, social democratic party, 1442. zoe garbett, the green _ democratic party, 1442. zoe garbett, the green party, 5984. tarun ghulati. _ the green party, 5984. tarun ghulati, independent, 1100. susan mary— ghulati, independent, 1100. susan mary hall, — ghulati, independent, 1100. susan mary hall, the conservative party candidate, 43,405. sadiq khan, labour— candidate, 43,405. sadiq khan, labour party, 54,481. andreas michli, independent, 901. the number of ballot papers rejected was as—

the number of ballot papers rejected was as follows. for want of an official — was as follows. for want of an official mark, one. voting for more than _ official mark, one. voting for more than one _ official mark, one. voting for more than one candidate, 147. writing or n1arks— than one candidate, 147. writing or marks by— than one candidate, 147. writing or marks by which the voter could be identified. — marks by which the voter could be identified, 16. unmarked orvoid marks by which the voter could be identified, 16. unmarked or void for uncertainty, — identified, 16. unmarked or void for uncertainty, 515, giving a total number— uncertainty, 515, giving a total number of rejected ballot papers of 679. number of rejected ballot papers of 679~ the _ number of rejected ballot papers of 679. the total move of ballot papers county. _ 679. the total move of ballot papers county, 125,645. electorate, county, 125, 645. electorate, 359,208. _ county, 125,645. electorate, 359,208, giving a turnout of 34.98%. thank _ 359,208, giving a turnout of 34.98%. thank you _ 359,208, giving a turnout of 34.98%. thank you very much. they— thank you very much. they have the result from bexley and bromley in the london mayoral results which continue to be counted. let's go straight to nick eardley to counted. let's go straight to nick ea rdley to get counted. let's go straight to nick eardley to get some analysis on that result —— just come in. what you make of what we have just heard ——

that result that has just come in. let me show you the result we have just got in, we tapped it into our computer very quickly to show you what it actually means. following a pattern we are starting to see. sadiq khan has beaten susan hall, that's different from last time. he has an 11,000 majority. this is the bit that matters. another swing from the conservatives to labour. 5.2%. that is good news for sadiq khan. it matches what we have seen in the other two parts of london we have seen so far, greenwich and lewisham, labour would expect to win by a country mile and they did. look at that, conservative to labour swing, 4.5%. the first result we had from london, murton and wandsworth, again, labour expected to win there and they did, they won comfortably. look at the swing, 5.1%. —— merton. we can show you the full picture in

london, sadiq khan is miles ahead with14 london, sadiq khan is miles ahead with 14 constituencies counted. again, that would have been what we would have expected from the constituencies we have had. the bit to pay attention to is not that, that does matter. but it is something completely different, it is the swing overall. the swing overall as things stand is very good for labour. i’m overall as things stand is very good for labour. �* ., ., ., overall as things stand is very good for labour-— for labour. i'm going to have to sto ou for labour. i'm going to have to stop you there. _ for labour. i'm going to have to stop you there. i _ for labour. i'm going to have to stop you there. i have - for labour. i'm going to have to stop you there. i have another. stop you there. i have another result, north—east london. let's listen. zoe garbett, the green party, 17.901 — tarun ghulati, independent, 922. susan— tarun ghulati, independent, 922. susan mary hall, conservatives, 34,099 — susan mary hall, conservatives, 34,099. sadiq khan, labour party,

127,455 _ andreas michli, independent, 2057. brian— andreas michli, independent, 2057. brian rose. — andreas michli, independent, 2057. brian rose, london real party, 955. nick scanlon, britain first, 1095. the number of ballot papers rejected was as— the number of ballot papers rejected was as follows. want of an official mark, _ was as follows. want of an official mark, zero — was as follows. want of an official mark, zero. voting for more than one candidate, _ mark, zero. voting for more than one candidate, 233. writing or marks by which _ candidate, 233. writing or marks by which the _ candidate, 233. writing or marks by which the voter could be identified, one. unmarked orvoid which the voter could be identified, one. unmarked or void for uncertainty, 794. total number of rejected _ uncertainty, 794. total number of rejected ballots, 1028. total number

of ballots— rejected ballots, 1028. total number of ballots counted, 207,722. electorate, 524,885. turnout, 39.57. thank— electorate, 524,885. turnout, 39.57. thank you. _ electorate, 524,885. turnout, 39.57. thank ou. ,, , ., thank you. studio: so there you have it, another result _ thank you. studio: so there you have it, another result coming _ thank you. studio: so there you have it, another result coming in _ thank you. studio: so there you have it, another result coming in from - it, another result coming in from north—east london. the mayoral contest. we are still with nick eardley, a political correspondent. i was just looking at the numbers there, the conservatives on something like 34000 and labour, sadiq khan, 127,000. so about four times the vote of his nearest opponent in that particular part of london. ~ . i. opponent in that particular part of london. ~ . ., , . london. which you would expect. that's the kind _ london. which you would expect. that's the kind of _ london. which you would expect. that's the kind of place _ london. which you would expect. that's the kind of place where - that's the kind of place where labour think they are going to do well. but breaking news, labour think they have won london. labour sources saying in the last minute that they are confident now that

sadiq khan is going to hold on to the mayoral position in london, and this is why. if you have a look at what's happened in the four results we have had so far, 5.7% swing from the conservatives to labour. from susan hall to sadiq khan. that matters. because had the conservatives if the conservatives were going to win it would have to be the other way, they would need a swing from labour to the conservatives but the opposite is happening. the votes are going in the wrong direction for the conservatives. so, a 5.7% swing so far with four constituencies counted, conservatives labour and on that basis labour sources telling the bbc in the last minute or so that they are now confident that sadiq khan is going to win —— conservatives to labour. qm. sadiq khan is going to win -- conservatives to labour. ok, that news 'ust conservatives to labour. ok, that news just coming _ conservatives to labour. ok, that news just coming in _ conservatives to labour. ok, that newsjust coming in there. - conservatives to labour. ok, that newsjust coming in there. this i conservatives to labour. 0k, that| newsjust coming in there. this all news just coming in there. this all comes, of course, after there was

some talk, may be about 12 hours ago, that it was going to be really, really close. you had heard from some sources in the conservative party even saying that sadiq khan might lose, and now all of that clearly was incorrect.— might lose, and now all of that clearly was incorrect. yeah, it was nonsense. — clearly was incorrect. yeah, it was nonsense, wasn't _ clearly was incorrect. yeah, it was nonsense, wasn't it? _ clearly was incorrect. yeah, it was nonsense, wasn't it? i— clearly was incorrect. yeah, it was nonsense, wasn't it? i must- clearly was incorrect. yeah, it was nonsense, wasn't it? i must say, l nonsense, wasn't it? i must say, chatting to people in the conservative party last night, they were playing that down, actually. they were attributing those comments to local sources, people at the count, and they were saying, look, we still think sadiq khan is going to win. but what is going to be really interesting over the next few hours, assuming sadiq khan wins, which is now the widespread assumption and something labour are externally confident of, is how he wins. a 5.7% swing so far from the conservatives to labour in an area that labour already held is looking like a pretty good result, it suggests that labour could do well when it comes to london assembly members as well. it will be interesting to see whether sadiq

khan's personal vote holds up in a way that perhaps it hasn't in some other parts of the country. we have been chatting this morning, i know you are chatting to chris mason about it earlier, the stats that show in parts of england where there is a large muslim population, the labour vote was down quite significantly, about 20% from the key wards the bbc has analysed. well, in london where lots of parts of london have a large muslim population as well, that's not happening from what we have seen so far. sadiq khan seems to be doing pretty well. let me just put something else up. this is the overall tally so far which shows sadiq khan miles leo fuhr hjelde of susan hall. not a huge surprise he is quite far ahead because we have only had those labour friendly area so far. —— sadiq khan miles ahead of susan hall. i’m so far. -- sadiq khan miles ahead of susan hall-— susan hall. i'm going to “ump in because we * susan hall. i'm going to “ump in because we have fi susan hall. i'm going tojump in because we have another - susan hall. i'm going tojump in because we have another result| because we have another result coming in from wandsworth, which of

course... let's go straight to wandsworth. course. .. let's go straight to wandsworth.— course... let's go straight to wandsworth. ., ., ' ., ., wandsworth. void, five and 29, total number of rejected _ wandsworth. void, five and 29, total number of rejected ballot _ wandsworth. void, five and 29, total number of rejected ballot papers - wandsworth. void, five and 29, totali number of rejected ballot papers was therefore _ number of rejected ballot papers was therefore 1171. the total number of ballot _ therefore 1171. the total number of ballot papers counted was 176,823 so a turnout _ ballot papers counted was 176,823 so a turnout of 49.57%. i therefore declare — a turnout of 49.57%. i therefore declare that the only alison gibbon has been _ declare that the only alison gibbon has been duly elected as london assembly member for merton and wandsworth. cheering

—— leonie alison cooper. -- leonie alison cooper. thank you for that announcement. _ -- leonie alison cooper. thank you for that announcement. it - -- leonie alison cooper. thank you for that announcement. it was - -- leonie alison cooper. thank you| for that announcement. it was eight years— for that announcement. it was eight years ago— for that announcement. it was eight years ago since _ for that announcement. it was eight years ago since i_ for that announcement. it was eight years ago since i was _ for that announcement. it was eight years ago since i was first _ for that announcement. it was eight years ago since i was first elected . years ago since i was first elected as the _ years ago since i was first elected as the london— years ago since i was first elected as the london assembly- years ago since i was first elected as the london assembly member| years ago since i was first elected i as the london assembly member for merton _ as the london assembly member for merton and — as the london assembly member for merton and wandsworth. _ as the london assembly member for merton and wandsworth. this - as the london assembly member for merton and wandsworth. this is - as the london assembly member for merton and wandsworth. this is thei merton and wandsworth. this is the third time _ merton and wandsworth. this is the third time that — merton and wandsworth. this is the third time that i've _ merton and wandsworth. this is the third time that i've been— merton and wandsworth. this is the third time that i've been elected - merton and wandsworth. this is the third time that i've been elected byl third time that i've been elected by people _ third time that i've been elected by people across — third time that i've been elected by people across merton _ third time that i've been elected by people across merton and - third time that i've been elected by- people across merton and wandsworth. the first _ people across merton and wandsworth. the first time _ people across merton and wandsworth. the first time my— people across merton and wandsworth. the first time my majority _ people across merton and wandsworth. the first time my majority was - people across merton and wandsworth. the first time my majority was just - the first time my majority was just over 4000 — the first time my majority was just over 4000. last _ the first time my majority was just over 4000. last time _ the first time my majority was just over 4000. last time it— the first time my majority was just over 4000. last time it was - the first time my majority was just over 4000. last time it was just . over 4000. last time it wasjust over— over 4000. last time it wasjust over 14.000 _ over 4000. last time it wasjust over14,000. so— over 4000. last time it wasjust over 14,000. so to _ over 4000. last time it wasjust over 14,000. so to find - over 4000. last time it wasjust over 14,000. so to find that - over 4000. last time it wasjust over 14,000. so to find that it l over 4000. last time it wasjusti over 14,000. so to find that it is over14,000. so to find that it is now— over 14,000. so to find that it is now 27.000~~ _ now 27,000... cheering- cheering and i hope people have put their trust _ and i hope people have put their trust in _ and i hope people have put their trust in me — and i hope people have put their trust in me as _ and i hope people have put their trust in me as the _ and i hope people have put their trust in me as the labour- and i hope people have put their trust in me as the labour and . trust in me as the labour and co-operative _ trust in me as the labour and co—operative representative i trust in me as the labour andi co—operative representative in trust in me as the labour and - co—operative representative in city hall for— co—operative representative in city hall for them _ co—operative representative in city hall for them because _ co—operative representative in city hall for them because we - co—operative representative in city hall for them because we have - co—operative representative in city. hall for them because we have been doing _ hall for them because we have been doing a _ hall for them because we have been doing a good — hall for them because we have been doing a good job _ hall for them because we have been doing a good job over— hall for them because we have been doing a good job over the _ hall for them because we have been doing a good job over the last - hall for them because we have been doing a good job over the last eightl doing a good job over the last eight years _ doing a good job over the last eight years it _ doing a good job over the last eight years it is — doing a good job over the last eight years. it is clearly _ doing a good job over the last eight years. it is clearly a _ doing a good job over the last eight years. it is clearly a two _ doing a good job over the last eight years. it is clearly a two horse - years. it is clearly a two horse race _ years. it is clearly a two horse race in — years. it is clearly a two horse race in merton— years. it is clearly a two horse race in merton and _ years. it is clearly a two horse . race in merton and wandsworth. years. it is clearly a two horse - race in merton and wandsworth. we have two— race in merton and wandsworth. we have two local — race in merton and wandsworth. we have two local labour _ race in merton and wandsworth. we have two local labour councils, - race in merton and wandsworth. wei have two local labour councils, when i have two local labour councils, when i was _ have two local labour councils, when i was first _ have two local labour councils, when i was first elected _ have two local labour councils, when i was first elected we _ have two local labour councils, when i was first elected we had _ have two local labour councils, when i was first elected we had only - have two local labour councils, when i was first elected we had only one. i i was first elected we had only one. we have _ i was first elected we had only one. we have four— i was first elected we had only one. we have four labour _ i was first elected we had only one. we have four labour mps _ i was first elected we had only one. we have four labour mps and - i was first elected we had only one. we have four labour mps and i- i was first elected we had only one. | we have four labour mps and i hope that is— we have four labour mps and i hope that is the _ we have four labour mps and i hope that is the futi— we have four labour mps and i hope that is the full five _ we have four labour mps and i hope that is the full five very _ we have four labour mps and i hope that is the full five very soon. - we have four labour mps and i hope that is the full five very soon. i- that is the full five very soon. i

have _ that is the full five very soon. i have a — that is the full five very soon. i have a lot _ that is the full five very soon. i have a lot of— that is the full five very soon. i have a lot of people _ that is the full five very soon. i have a lot of people to - that is the full five very soon. i have a lot of people to thank l that is the full five very soon. i- have a lot of people to thank across both of— have a lot of people to thank across both of the — have a lot of people to thank across both of the boroughs. _ have a lot of people to thank across both of the boroughs. there - have a lot of people to thank across both of the boroughs. there is - have a lot of people to thank across both of the boroughs. there is my. both of the boroughs. there is my whole _ both of the boroughs. there is my whole team — both of the boroughs. there is my whole team who _ both of the boroughs. there is my whole team who are _ both of the boroughs. there is my whole team who are here - both of the boroughs. there is my whole team who are here with - both of the boroughs. there is my whole team who are here with me today _ whole team who are here with me today but — whole team who are here with me today but i — whole team who are here with me today. but i especially— whole team who are here with me today. but i especially want - whole team who are here with me today. but i especially want to - today. but i especially want to thank — today. but i especially want to thank samantha _ today. but i especially want to thank samantha lewis, - today. but i especially want to thank samantha lewis, zahral today. but i especially want to - thank samantha lewis, zahra overton and ed _ thank samantha lewis, zahra overton and ed petrie — thank samantha lewis, zahra overton and ed petrie for— thank samantha lewis, zahra overton and ed petrie for the _ thank samantha lewis, zahra overton and ed petrie for the work— thank samantha lewis, zahra overton and ed petrie for the work they - thank samantha lewis, zahra overton and ed petrie for the work they have i and ed petrie for the work they have put and ed petrie for the work they have out in _ and ed petrie for the work they have out in 0ur— and ed petrie for the work they have put in. our fantastic— and ed petrie for the work they have put in. our fantastic organisers. - put in. our fantastic organisers. studio: — put in. our fantastic organisers. studio: we _ put in. our fantastic organisers. studio: we are— put in. our fantastic organisers. studio: we are going - put in. our fantastic organisers. studio: we are going to- put in. our fantastic organisers. studio: we are going to leave i put in. our fantastic organisers. . studio: we are going to leave that there are now. that result there in merton and wandsworth for the greater london authority, significant there that the labour candidate won again, but actually, as she was saying there, she has increased her majority quite significantly. let's go back to nick eardley in the newsroom. i keep interrupting you because every time you start talking we get another result. but that's the beauty of a live election result there. what you make of that? it is no surprise she has won again but she has increased her majority quite significantly. yes, she has, don't worry about interrupting, it gives me more to put on the screen when you eventually come back. but this is the result we have just seen. as you

see, leonie co cooper winning with a comfortable majority. not a surprise, merton and wandsworth is the kind of place labour would expect to win the london assembly seat. but when we look at a london results, the thing that we are really interested in is what is happening to the respective parties�* vote share command as you just said, labour's vote is up and the conservative vote is down. and that's why when you look at this seat, more broadly when you look at the race for mayor, the swings really matter because all that indication we have been chewing over all morning that sadiq khan is going to stay as london mayor. my labour sources are confident now that that's the case. and the evidence is mounting up as well. look at that, we have at four of the 14 constituencies in london income accounting for london mayor that is, and that is the swing, 5.7% conservative to labour. if there was any chance that sadiq khan was going to lose it would have to be going on the other direction. so labour look

safe as things stand in london. irlick safe as things stand in london. nick eardle , safe as things stand in london. nick eardley. thank _ safe as things stand in london. nick eardley, thank you for the moment, we'll be back with nick when more results come in to number crunch and analyse. to do more number crunching and more analysis, i'm nowjoined by the bbc�*s election guru sirjohn curtice. it has been a busy few hours and we have seen lots of counts and results coming in from london and labour sources are now telling the bbc that they believe sadiq khan has done it again. yes. sadiq khan has done it again. yes, that does look _ sadiq khan has done it again. yes, that does look likely, _ sadiq khan has done it again. is: that does look likely, although i guess we should still add the caveat that we have not yet seen the results from a constituency wholly in outer london. whether or not the swing there is markedly lower or not because of the row about ulez, the scheme that requires people going into london with older cars to have to pay rather a lot to do so, whether or not that will make a difference to the result out there. i think there are two key points we can take away, firstly specifically about london. that london assembly

result in merton and wandsworth for the constituency to the body to whom the constituency to the body to whom the mayor is accountable. the interesting thing there is that the result for the london assembly in merton and wandsworth is very similar to the result for the mayoral contest in that part of london. there has been lots of speculation that sadiq khan is not as popular as his party and that therefore perhaps there will be a difference between his vote and the vote for his party in the london assembly. welcome on this first contest at least that is not the case, so it is something to keep on watching. but now much more broadly, we have been seeing swings consistently now in mayoral contest, notjust in london, but we have seen them in sheffield, in liverpool, we saw the mantra yesterday in tees valley. the swings we are seeing i think does now mean that you are really in the right place, because the kinds of swings we have been seeing elsewhere, if they were replicated in the west midlands, and

as you have been saying it looked as though they would be very close indeed. so i suspect now for the rest of today the real interest is going to be what you eventually come up going to be what you eventually come up with in birmingham, and i think at the moment, evenjust looking at the information external to the west midlands, let alone what you can learn from inside, that this is now the key uncertainty. but of course it could make quite a lot of difference to the conservative party. they have the tees valley. they would like to have the west midlands. but are they going to have it? might have to wait a few hours yet but i think that's now the crucial question this afternoon. yes. john, we're hearing that result might come here in about an hour around three o'clock. i was discussing this with chris mason earlier as well. the thing that is slightly different with this is that you have seen the conservative incumbent here andy street almost distance himself from the national party. he's been big on brand andy,

he says it's the place, not the party. so if he does end up winning, of course rishi sunak will take this as a real success. but many would say this has been about a local campaign rather than the national issues. irate campaign rather than the national issues. ~ ~' ., campaign rather than the national issues. ~ ,, ., ., ., ., , , , issues. we know from what happens in the west midlands _ issues. we know from what happens in the west midlands in _ issues. we know from what happens in the west midlands in 2021, _ issues. we know from what happens in the west midlands in 2021, we - issues. we know from what happens in the west midlands in 2021, we talked i the west midlands in 2021, we talked about this earlier, that is that while andy street won the mayoralty, it was at the same time a parallel election with the same voters for the west midlands police and crime commissioner. and the labour party won that contest. actually, the government tried to stop, to scrap the west midlands police and crime commissioner and combine it with andy street present position, or at least his position hitherto, as has happened in certain other places, places like greater manchester, for example. but the courts ruled against the government, they were trying to do it too quickly and they had not been enough consultation, they said. we will also have a parallel contest and a parallel

result probably somewhat later for the west midlands police and crime commissioner. 0k. the west midlands police and crime commissioner.— the west midlands police and crime commissioner. ., ,, , ., ,., . commissioner. 0k. thank you so much, sirjohn curtice- — commissioner. 0k. thank you so much, sirjohn curtice. we _ commissioner. ok. thank you so much, sirjohn curtice. we will— commissioner. 0k. thank you so much, sirjohn curtice. we will be _ commissioner. 0k. thank you so much, sirjohn curtice. we will be back - sirjohn curtice. we will be back with you through the course of this afternoon. for now, i will leave you with the weather with chris fawkes. but we will be back in birmingham life shortly. hello, there's been a big reversal of weather fortunes. yesterday, scotland and northern ireland had lots of sunshine and warm weather, with temperatures peaking at 23 degrees celsius. not so much today, though. it's a lot cloudier, a lot cooler. and for some, that means a drop of about nine degrees celsius between yesterday's warm sun and today's rather grey and cloudy skies. the clouds extensive then for scotland and northern ireland and is also still affecting parts of northern england and north wales. best of the sunshine further southwards today where yesterday it was cloudy and wet, feels a lot warmer in today's sunshine across these more southern regions. an odd shower for south east england, some wet weather continuing to affect northern ireland. with outbreaks of rain on and off.

there will be a bit of warmth across the very far north of highland scotland, where we could see temperatures into the low 20s, but otherwise it's going to be really quite a cool afternoon. now, overnight tonight, we're looking at cloud and rain continuing for a time in northern ireland, perhaps a few patches of rain running into scotland and the far north of england. drier weather with clearer skies further southwards will lead to quite a chilly night with temperatures getting down into low single figures in the coolest areas tomorrow. in the coolest areas. tomorrow, well, we've still got a lot of cloud for scotland and northern ireland with some showers in the forecast here. we'll start to see cloud thickening up in the southwest with some rain arriving here during the afternoon. in between, this should be a fine day for much of northern england, north wales, the midlands, east anglia and south east england largely dry with some pleasant spells of sunshine. and where the sunshine does bother putting in an appearance, it should feel quite pleasant. bank holiday monday — low pressure brings a weather front into southern—most areas of england, and with that there'll be cloudy skies, a bit of rain around as well.

some of it could be quite heavy for a time. showers develop across parts of northern england and eastern scotland. some of those could turn quite heavy and thundery in nature and probably quite cloudy in northern ireland. temperatures for most of us between around 16 and 19 degrees celsius in the warmest spots, but quite cool. on those north sea coasts of eastern scotland. beyond that, deeper into next week, high pressure starts to build in across the uk and that should mean the weather becomes a bit quieterfor a time. fewer showers around, a little bit more in the way of sunshine with temperatures generally running into the upper teens, perhaps low 20s in the warmest spots.

live from london, this is bbc news. in the last hour, the breaking news — the labour party claims sadiq khan is on course for a record term as the mayor of london. a number of constituencies in the capital have declared results — and in at least one, they show a 5% swing from conservative to labour. elsewhere the counting continues across england — as we await more results of mayoral elections in cities including greater manchester and west yorkshire.

good afternoon, i'm geeta guru—murthy and welcome to this bbc local election special. in the last hour, the breaking news — labour are saying their candidate for the mayor of london, sadiq khan, is on course to win a record third term at the mayor of london. i should had a third constituency to declare and it showed a 5% swing in a constituency where the conservatives were ahead in 2021 but it has now been won by city down. let's get some more on those numbers now. nick eardley is watching the data for us. what we know so far and how significant is it that labour seem to be calling it, given the uncertainty we saw in the last 24 hours?