Local election wipeout would see off Starmer, MPs say after Caerphilly rout

A wipeout for Labour in next May’s local elections would spell the end of Keir Starmer’s premiership, MPs have said, after the party suffered a crushing defeat in its traditional heartland in Wales.Though Plaid Cymru beat Reform UK to capture the Senedd seat in Caerphilly, the result highlighted a striking collapse of Labour’s vote, prompting fears in Westminster that Labour could be reduced to third place in Wales, a loss that would leave the leader’s position unrecoverable.In a town that Labour has controlled for more than a century and where it still has an MP, it secured just 11% of the vote, a negative swing of 27%. The humiliating result showed that the party is highly vulnerable to challenges from other progressive parties, as well as from Reform.It provoked renewed anger and concern from some Labour MPs, with one condemning what they called a “totally incoherent” strategy within No 10

When hearts were in the Home Office | Brief letters

The home secretary says that the Home Office is not fit for purpose (Report, 22 October). It was not always so. When Alice Bacon was a minister at Education, having moved there from the Home Office in the late 1960s, she told me, then Guardian education correspondent, that it was like moving from a Rolls‑Royce to a Mini.Richard BourneLondon Marilyn Rowley’s problem of being woken up by the irritating BBC Sounds jingle (Letters, 17 October) can be solved by setting the sleep timer in the Sounds app to turn the programme off after 45 minutes (In Our Time lasts 50).Tim MartineauPrenton, Merseyside So, Reform councillors in Kent have been told by their leader to “suck it up” (Report, 20 October)

No 10 accepts people are ‘disappointed with the pace of change’ as Plaid Cymru celebrates Caerphilly byelection win – as it happpened

The prime minister’s press secretary has responded to the Caerphilly Senedd constituency byelection, which saw a huge swing away from Labour, by saying that “Byelections are always difficult for incumbent governments,” PA Media reports.It quotes them saying:This one is no different, but we are determined to show the people of Caerphilly and working people across Wales the change the UK Government is delivering hand in hand with the Labour government in Wales.(We are) determined to go further and faster, understand people are disappointed with the pace of change, and that is what the Government is relentlessly focused on delivering for working people in Wales and across the UK.The prime minister’s press secretary has responded to the Caerphilly Senedd constituency byelection, which saw a victory for Plaid Cymru with Reform UK in second place and a huge swing away from Labour, by saying “By-elections are always difficult for incumbent governments. [We] understand people are disappointed with the pace of change”Lindsay Whittle has been sworn in as the Plaid Cymru Senedd member for Caerphilly in Cardiff after taking 47% of the vote with 15,961

Caerphilly byelection a triumph of positivity over division, says Plaid Cymru leader

Plaid Cymru can offer a positive vision for Wales for voters who want to reject the divisiveness of Reform UK, the party’s leader has said after a triumphant Welsh parliamentary byelection.Rhun ap Iorwerth said the 47% win for his party in the Caerphilly byelection was a rejection of Reform and its focus on immigration, which, while important, did not overshadow more pressing issues, such as healthcare and housing.Speaking to the Guardian on Friday outside Caerphilly Castle, ap Iorwerth said the win for his party’s candidate, Lindsay Whittle, also underlined a crash in support for Labour, which had “abandoned its values”.He said he accepted tactical voting was in play, but that it was only part of the picture, with some lifelong Labour supporters making a permanent shift in support.“The scale of the results shows the positive engagement with our vision,” he said

‘Reform didn’t have any idea about south Wales’: Plaid Cymru supporters celebrate byelection win

The skies above Caerphilly may have matched the turquoise of Reform UK but it was the green and yellow of Plaid Cymru that dominated the valleys town on Friday morning.The Welsh nationalists trounced their opponents with a hefty 47% of the vote in a Senedd byelection that was framed by many as a potential “canary in the coalmine” moment for Welsh politics.Reform failed to live up to the hype and came second with 36% and Labour’s vote – in a constituency it has held for decades – collapsed to a paltry 11%.It had been expected to be closer between Plaid and Reform, pegged as a 50/50 two-horse race. Both parties threw their weight behind the contest, with their respective leaders, Rhun ap Iorwerth and Nigel Farage, joining the campaign trail earlier this month

Plaid Cymru ousts Labour in Caerphilly byelection

Plaid Cymru has hailed its win at the Caerphilly byelection as a historic moment for Wales, as the dramatic result left the leaders of Labour and Reform UK wounded.Rhun ap Iorwerth’s party, which wants independence for Wales, seized the Senedd (Welsh parliament) constituency from Labour and resisted a fierce challenge from Reform UK.Plaid Cymru’s candidate, Lindsay Whittle, received 15,961 votes, while Reform UK’s Llŷr Powell won 12,113. Labour’s vote collapsed in what had been a stronghold, with its candidate, Richard Tunnicliffe, polling only 3,713 votes.The Welsh nationalists’ triumph was being put down in part to their clear, passionate call for the people of south Wales to reject Reform UK’s stance on immigration