Politics latest: Councils, mayoralties and parliamentary seat up for grabs on election day (2025)

Thanks for joining us this evening.

The show will be back on Friday to digest the local elections - tap the link below for everything you need to know.

Finally with Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander, we turn to the issue of road safety, and calls for more limitations on brand-new drivers until they have more experience, such as limiting the times of day they can drive, or the number of passengers they can carry.

She says the government bring forward "the first road safety strategy in 10 years", but graduate driving licences aren't being considered.

"This is a really difficult issue - I remember when I passed my driving test and one of the great joys was being able to take my friends in the back of the car, and there are a lot of people who behave responsibly," she says.

"And what we shouldn't be doing is penalising those people who are behaving responsibly."

But she does say she wants to "look at what measures we can take to reduce danger on our roads", which young people are "disproportionately affected by".

Challenged by Sophy on it being about ensuring new drivers have the appropriate experience, the minister says there is a "whole range of different things" that can be done, such as safer street design, safer cars, and ensuring appropriate speed limits.

Next with Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander, we turn to net zero after Sir Tony Blair questioned the transition and how it is being done (more here).

The senior minister tells Politics Hub With Sophy Ridge that the former PM "has been also clear today that he thinks that the UK government's approach to the transition to net zero is the right one".

Watch: Are Blair and Starmer split on climate?

Sophy replies that while that is true, Blair is also saying we need to be careful about moving too quickly away from fossil fuels, and the minister insists "that is the government's approach".

She points to the decision not to cancel existing oil and gas licences.

"We've always been clear that it's going to be a phased and responsible transition," she adds.

'Industries of the future'

Asked about the Unite union's concerns that the government has no plan to replace the jobs that will be lost in the fossil fuel industry, Alexander says the government has relaxed certain rules so that hybrid cars can be sold for longer, which will save jobs.

She says the transition to electric vehicles will in fact ensure there are "high-skilled, well-paying jobs" in the "industries of the future".

The government guest on tonight'sPolitics Hub With Sophy Ridge is the transport secretary, Heidi Alexander, who is speaking to us ahead of the polls opening in the local elections tomorrow.

She tells Sophy these elections are "unique" because most of the councils up for election are held by the Tories, and so she says the results will be "a verdict on Kemi Badenoch's leadership of the Conservative Party".

There are 23 councils up for grabs in England tomorrow - 18 are Conservative controlled thanks to the party's strong showing in 2021.

Minister claims Reform will charge for NHS

Sophy puts to her that this is as much of a test for Labour, given the threat from Reform UK, but Alexander says she is not seeing the same support for Nigel Farage's party as is reflected in the polls.

She claims Reform will make you "whip your credit card out when you get to the door of A&E or that you take a bank loan out if you want to have your hip [replaced]" - a claim Farage categorically denies.

She also says Reform UK candidates at the general election last year made "racist comments", and praises Rishi Sunak for saying that "his daughters shouldn't have to grow up in a country where people who are standing for public office are using such vile and racist language".

'Vote Tory, get Reform - and vice versa'

Alexander also points to Reform UK in-fighting, with Rupert Lowe MP having been suspended over bullying claims he denies, and says Labour are "serious" about improving public services and delivering "change".

Asked if Reform UK or the Tories are a bigger threat, Alexander says: "If you're voting for a Conservative, you might be getting Reform. If you're voting for Reform, you might be getting Conservative."

It's the day before the local elections - my last chance to be able to talk about them before we all get locked down into polling day and the rules about what broadcasters can and can't discuss.

It's a funny set of elections because the Conservatives are defending far more seats than anyone else - so it will be a big test for Kemi Badenoch, the first real verdict at the ballot box since she became leader.

But for me, tomorrow is really about Reform.Can it translate votes and support into seats?

Watch: Is the PM worried about Reform?

If it can, that's going to have huge consequences not just for these local elections, but also the next general election.

And you can tell the other parties are worried. Reform only managed to win five seats at the general election, but has had an outsized impact on our politics already - from Labour cutting foreign aid, to the Tories distancing themselves from their own past net zero targets.

You could argue these changes would have happened regardless of Reform - that the parties are just following shifting voter sentiment and changing political consensus.

But if Reform has a good night tomorrow - winning votes from both Labour and the Conservatives - you can expect to see Nigel Farage's party setting the political narrative even more.

Our flagship weeknight politics programme is under way.

Joining us tonight is Transport SecretaryHeidi Alexander.

On our panel are Green Party co-leaderCarla Denyerand former Conservative MPNadhim Zahawi.

Watch live in the stream at the top of this page.

Donald Trump has reached the milestone of 100 days in office since his second inauguration - and has been boasting of quite how popular and successful his administration has been.

With his tariff policy having caused economic chaos around the world, America's economy has suffered its worst day in years today - but he's blamed that on Joe Biden.

Nigel Farage has historically been one of Trump's biggest fans over here, and the US president's unpopularity in Britain is seen by some as a potential obstacle to the Reform leader ever becoming PM.

Farage told our political editor Beth Rigbyhe was "shocked" by Trump's more incendiary foreign policy moves, notably his pledge to annex Canada - widely viewed as a key reason why the country's Liberal Party won its general election over the Conservatives this week.

Asked if that worries him, Farage said: "It worries me that the King is the head of state in Canada, yeah."

Of Trump, he added: "I'm a friend of his, I admire what he's done on the southern border, I admire what is done on at the war on woke, but I do scratch my head about some of the other foreign policies."

Kemi Badenoch has said she's open to the idea of Tory councillors doing coalition deals with Reform after the local elections tomorrow.

The Tories are defending 18 of the 23 councils up for grabs across England, and Badenoch has warned of a tough night for her party.

Asked about the possibility of any deals, Nigel Farage told our political editor Beth Rigbyhe'donly be open to them if "our conditions are met", suggesting too many councils are wasting money and focusing on apparently "woke" issues like climate change.

But he said he suspects the Tories will lose swathes of votes to Reform and the Lib Dems, and are "ceasing to be the main opposition party".

"I believe on Friday, at the end of counting, we will be seen as the main opposition."

Watch: Who has more to lose in the local elections?

Nigel Farage has told our political editor Beth Rigby he's "optimistic" Reform can win tomorrow's by-election in Runcorn and Helsby.

Labour won the seat with a huge majority at the general election last year, but have seen their poll ratings slump since then - and the MP who secured victory, Mike Amesbury, was booted out of the party and later stood down after punching one of his constituents.

Pollsters and bookmakers reckon Reform UK will run Labour incredibly close this time round - and maybe even win.

Farage said: "I think it's tight, but you know what, I do feel optimistic.

"I'm feeling more optimistic with every day that passes."

The 15 candidates are:

• Catherine Anne Blaiklock (English Democrats)
• Dan Clarke (Liberal Party)
• Chris Copeman (Green Party)
• Paul Duffy (Liberal Democrats)
• Peter Ford (Workers Party)
• Howling Laud Hope (Monster Raving Loony Party)
• Sean Houlston (Conservatives)
• Jason Philip Hughes (Volt UK)
• Alan McKie (Independent)
• Graham Harry Moore (English Constitution Party)
• Paul Andrew Murphy (Social Democratic Party)
• Sarah Pochin (Reform)
• Karen Shore (Labour)
• John Stevens (Rejoin EU)
• Michael Williams (Independent)

Farage also predicted big gains for Reform in tomorrow's 23 council elections across England, but admitted he feared "not delivering" at any authorities where his party win power.

"People want us to represent change. We're going to do very, very well in these elections and that I have no doubt. If we win county councils and mayoralties, we also have to deliver," he said.

The former PM's warning that a strategy limiting fossil fuels is "doomed to fail" doesn't exactly sit well with the government's pledge - first made under the Tories - to get to net zero by 2050.

As Keir Starmer grappled to defend his climate policies, the Tony Blair Institute clarified the government approach is "right".

Did Starmer ask for that clarification? The PM's spokesperson won't get into "private conversations".

Both sides are at pains to talk down any disagreement.

But behind the scenes, some Labour MPs are not happy with Blair's words. One texts: "That's not where voters are on climate change."

That's not what Reform and the Conservatives think. Both Kemi Badenoch and Nigel Farage have scrapped net zero targets and are pushing a dividing line they think will chime with the public.

The PM's spokesperson reiterated the government would "deliver net zero in a way that treads lightly on people's lives".

Treading lightly, though, is still a tread.

Watch: Badenoch brands net zero 'impossible'

Blair also warned about job losses, just as Scotland's last oil refinery in Grangemouth closed costing 430 jobs.

The Labour MP there, Brian Leishman, tells me he is "absolutely furious" and there is a "legitimate question" about whether the government cares as much about Scotland as the rest of the country.

They're uncomfortable questions, and the PM will face more as he grapples with how we get to net zero by 2050.