Local Elections: Major Rotherham gains for UKIP

UKIP is celebrating election success after making large gains in Rotherham, where it's now the largest opposition party in the Labour run authority.

Elsewhere in the Calendar region Labour held onto the councils it controlled, and took overall control of Bradford. But there's been criticism from some within the party that it should have done better.

UKIP says it's now a real political force to be reckoned with, as Chris Kiddey reports:

As UKIP make significant gains in North East Lincolnshire, Cllr Ron Shepherd (Scartho ward) says people clearly believe in the party.

UKIP gained five seats on the council, bringing their total to eight.

Labour have retained control of Doncaster Council but they lost two seats.

One of the more surprising of results was the Mexborough seat - a lone campaigner fighting under the banner “Working for Mexborough, The Forgotten Town,” seized it from Labour by 120 votes.

It was a good night for the Conservatives, who retained their seats, while UKIP gained only one seat.

The new make up of the council is:

Labour - 48 councillors (-2)

Conservatives - 8 councillors (no change)

Independents - 3 councillors (+1)

Lib Dem - 2 councillors (-1)

UKIP - 1 councillor (+1)

Other - 1 councillor (+1).

Labour have lost North East Lincolnshire Council, to no overall control.

UKIP gained five more seats, bringing their total to eight. That means they overtake the Liberal Democrats as the third biggest at the authority.

Labour lost four seats, while the the Conservatives lost one.

The Liberal Democrats held on to the two seats they were defending.

This is how the new council is now made up:

Labour - 21 councillors

Conservative - 10 councillors

UKIP - 8 councillors

Liberal Democrats - 3 councillors

UKIP deputy leader, Paul Nuttall, says his party is the only opposition to Labour in the North of England:

Harrogate's Conservatives have gained three seats to increase their Council majority.

The seats were all lost by the Liberal Democrats, with the fourth lost to an independent.

Sheffield Council elections have traditionally been Lib Dem v Labour, and often a very fierce battle, with some real venom between Sheffield's very own Nick Clegg and the Labour council. But in a good number of wards, there's now a new contender.

UKIP gained three seats to make a real break-through here. And in many wards they were a close second or third, with just a few hundred votes between the top three parties. Like elsewhere in Yorkshire, where they run, they do well. Rarely do they poll poorly.

UKIP deputy leader, Paul Nuttall has described the party's success in the Rotherham local election as "sensational":

Labour have taken Derbyshire local authority Amber Valley Borough Council from the Conservatives for the first time in 14 years, in a nail-biting count which went down to the very last seat.

UKIP gained a significant number of votes in the Borough, but not enough to secure a councillor outright. The leader of the Conservatives says the new UKIP voters had turned away from the Tories, thereby splitting the vote and letting Labour in.

Of the 15 seats up for vote, Labour won 11 and the Conservatives won four.

Before yesterday's election the Tories held a 23 -21 majority to Labour - that has now been flipped in Labour's favour, with 23 councillors versus 21 Tories, the wards changing hands being Belper South, and Ripley.