The BBC are reporting that the Lib-Dems won only one council. In fact, we won four, and lost two. Liverpool was also reported as a loss, but we won exactly half the seats, and would have a casting vote. Technically, the result was no overall control, but then an "Independent Labour" candidate joined the Lib Dems, so now we have a majority of two.

I'm particularly pleased about that, having met a couple of our city councillors at conference in Liverpool. I stayed with a cabinet member (as part of a fund-raising B&B scheme), and we went out for drinks with Warren Bradley, the council leader on the Friday night. Here's a photo of me (left) with Warren. We exchanged stories about how exciting politics was in the 80s - his campaigns against Hatton's army sounded more hairy than my efforts at the peace camps.