Keir Starmer’s party lost Hartlepool, red since its creation in 1974, in a Westminster by-election that was even worse than expected. Scottish Labour are fairly pleased with themselves, tooIt helps that Scottish Labour set their expectations low, only hoping for a “strong third” behind the SNP and Tories. Mr Sarwar also knocked a very slight dent in Nicola Sturgeon’s vote share in a publicity-grabbing run against her in her own seat. There’s a long, long, long way to go, but Scottish Labour have not collapsed completely - and low expectations were met. And Greater Manchester mayor Andy Burnham - outspoken over Covid - notched another four points onto his vote share too.

Source: Daily Mirror May 09, 2021 12:42 UTC