Labour's Jonathan Ashworth has brutal 3 words for Tory MP Jonathan Gullis following local election result | indy100

Ashworth reacts to 16pt swing in Lincolnshire by-election: 'You'd be toast'

BBC

Labour frontbencher Jonathan Ashworth has taken a swing at his 'rival' Jonathan Gullis following a drubbing at the local elections for the Conservatives.

The Conservatives suffered a heavy defeat in the Blackpool South by-election and council losses are mounting after early declarations. Rishi Sunak has suffered a by-election drubbing and faces further pain in council contests across England.

Labour’s Chris Webb won the Blackpool South parliamentary seat with a swing of 26.33% from the Tories and Sir Keir Starmer’s party also secured council wins in areas which will be key general election battlegrounds later this year.

The Tories avoided the humiliation of coming third in Blackpool South but finished just 117 votes ahead of Reform UK.

Elsewhere, the Tories police and crime commissioner in Lincolnshire managed to hang on to their seat despite a 16 per cent swing to Labour.

When asked by Laura Kuenssberg on the BBC's local election broadcast what Ashworth, with Gullis sitting next to him, thought of the result, he gave a rather blunt assessment for the Conservatives.

Ashworth said: "That’s quite a swing, isn’t it?" Before adding: You’d be toast, if there was a 16 per cent swing to Labour, wouldn’t you?”

A laughing Gullis then retorted: "I’m laughing because Jonathan wants me to go. I don’t fear anything in Stoke-on-Trent North.”

Ashworth reacts to 16pt swing in Lincolnshire PCC by-election\u2026 tells Jonathan Gullis: \u201cwell you\u2019d be toast wouldn\u2019t you\u201d
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Gullis was voted in as the MP for Stoke-On-Trent North in 2019 with a majority of 6,286

Out of the 107 councils where votes were held on Thursday, just 35 counted overnight – but the results make grim reading for the Prime Minister.

The Tories lost control of three authorities and 96 councillors lost their seats. Labour gained three authorities and 58 councillors.

Additional reporting by PA.

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