Lib Dems gains shock Tories, and leave Labour trailing

1.41.00am BST (GMT +0100) Sun 18th Oct 2009

Droitwich Lib Dems campaigning in SW Ward by-election

Recent by-elections contested by all three major parties have seen Liberal Democrats taking 36% of the votes, with Conservatives on 32% and Labour trailing on 21%.

The latest Liberal Democrat victory in the election for a directly elected mayor in Bedford on October 15th saw Liberal Democrat Councillor Dave Hodgson romp home with 54% of the second preference votes against 46% for the Tories. Labour came 5th with 10% of first preference votes, followed by the Greens 6th and last with 3%.

Margaret Rowley, prospective Liberal Democrat MP for Mid-Worcestershire, said " The voters are seeing through the glib and predictable promises from both the Conservatives and Labour. The Liberal Democrats are replacing Labour as the progressive alternative to the Tories. Labour has lost the plot; they have moved so far from their socialist roots that they have lost the justification for their existence. Only the Liberal Democrats are proposing fairer taxation, more accountability in politics and have realistic plans for a greener future."