The 30 local councils where elections will now go ahead in May after Starmer’s latest U-turn

The government has abandoned plans to postpone local elections for dozens of councils in May after receiving legal advice against the move.

Labour announced plans last year to postpone some elections in areas currently undergoing an overhaul of local government structures.

Last month, local government secretary Steve Reed confirmed 29 of the 136 council elections due to be held this year will now be delayed until 2027. One further council was then later granted permission to postpone elections.

But on Monday, the Ministry of Housing and Local Government announced it was dropping the plans after receiving advice from lawyers following a legal challenge from Reform UK.

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“Following legal advice, the government has withdrawn its original decision to postpone 30 local elections in May,” a statement said.

“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.”

The government previously said the delays were requested by local councils due to a lack of resources amid ongoing plans to scrap two-tier authorities and merge them into single unitary councils by 2028.

Of the 63 councils able to apply for a delay, a total of 30 were due to go ahead with the postponement.

The councils that were due to have their elections delayed were:

The Electoral Commission previously criticised the delays, saying it risked “damaging public confidence”. The decision has also prompted claims from opposition parties that the postponements are politically motivated.

Tory shadow local government secretary James Cleverly accusing Labour of “running scared of voters” amid devastating approval ratings.

Nigel Farage claimed the U-turn as a victory for his party, writing on social media: “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.”

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The government has agreed to pay Reform UK’s legal costs after the party challenged the initial decision to postpone the votes.

Kemi Badenoch criticised “U-turn after U-turn after U-turn” following the government’s decision to abandon plans, writing on X: “Predictable chaos from a useless government that cannot make basic decisions.

“The legal mess is no surprise and one of the reasons why Conservatives (with a couple of exceptions who now look really silly) opposed the move to delay council elections for a second year in a row”.

In a letter to council leaders on Monday, Mr Reed said some £62 million will be made available to local authorities undergoing structural changes, he said.

Mr Reed added: “My officials will be in touch with those affected councils to understand if any further practical support will be required.”

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But the leader of Norfolk County Council, one of the authorities who were expecting to postpone their elections in May this year, criticised the government for “wasting everyone’s time”.

The Conservative-run authority, which last held elections in May 2021, has said that it had planned for the Government’s decision to reinstate the elections.

Councillor Kay Mason Billig said: “I note the government’s change of mind on yet another decision it couldn’t stick to – wasting everyone’s time.

“We had already budgeted for and were planning for elections, so we can now proceed.”

Peterborough City Council (PCC), another administration hoping to suspend its elections, has said it had also planned for this outcome.