Keir Starmer has abandoned plans to postpone 30 council elections this May after a legal challenge from Reform UK.
The local authorities had their polling days pushed back amid a reorganisation drive.
The move triggered Nigel Farage to launch a legal battle, accusing Labour of trying to avoid bruising election defeats to Reform in the spring.
The announcement is the 14th U-turn of Keir Starmer’s time in office, after the government changed course of pub business rates and inheritance tax for farmers.
A Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) spokesperson said today: ‘Following legal advice, the Government has withdrawn its original decision to postpone 30 local elections in May.
‘Providing certainty to councils about their local elections is now the most crucial thing and all local elections will now go ahead in May 2026.’
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Nigel Farage said the Government’s decision to abandon plans to cancel local elections in 30 councils was a victory for Reform UK.
In a statement on X, he said: ‘We took this Labour government to court and won.
‘In collusion with the Tories, Keir Starmer tried to stop 4.6 million people voting on May 7th.
‘Only Reform UK fights for democracy.’
The 7 May elections, taking place in councils across England, as well as the Scottish and Welsh Parliaments, are expected to be painful for the Labour Party as it suffers from low poll ratings.
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