Jump to content

1973 United Kingdom local elections

Add links
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

1973 United Kingdom local elections
← 1972 12 April 1973 (England & Wales)
1 May 1973 (Scotland)
10 May 1973 (England & Wales)
30 May 1973 (Northern Ireland)
7 June 1973 (England)		 1974 →
1 Unicameral area, all 6 metropolitan counties, all 39 non-metropolitan counties,
all 36 metropolitan boroughs, all 296 English districts, 1 sui generis authority,
all 26 Northern Irish districts, all 8 Welsh counties and all 37 Welsh districts
  Majority party Minority party Third party
 
Leader Harold Wilson Edward Heath Jeremy Thorpe
Party Labour Conservative Liberal
Leader since 14 February 1963 27 July 1965 18 January 1967
Map of the results of the elections in England and Wales, showing party control by district (left) and county (right).

The first elections to the new local authorities established by the Local Government Act 1972 in England and Wales and the new Northern Ireland district councils created by the Local Government Act (Northern Ireland) 1972 took place in 1973. Elections to the existing Greater London Council also took place.[1]

England and Wales

[edit]

The elections took place on three dates:[2]

Elections took place for all the seats on the councils. In the case of the new councils, they became shadow authorities, taking over from the existing local authorities on 1 April 1974. The elections for the new councils had been brought forward from an originally planned date in November 1973, to allow the councils more time to act as shadow authorities - the final dates were set in May 1972.[3][4]

The April elections

[edit]

The elections held on 12 April saw a very impressive performance by the Labour Party, which regained control of the Greater London Council and took control of all six of the new metropolitan county councils. In the rest of England, they won seven county councils, including two of the new "estuary" counties: Cleveland and Humberside. The party also won Gwent and the three Glamorgan county councils (West Glamorgan, Mid Glamorgan, South Glamorgan) in Wales.

The poor Conservative vote in London and the metropolitan counties was somewhat compensated by winning thirteen of the non-metropolitan counties. Failure to gain Essex or Hertfordshire were disappointments to the party, but taking control of Gloucestershire was a success. The party also failed to gain its only realistic Welsh prospect, South Glamorgan.

There were no great successes for the Liberal party, which found itself in third place in all the metropolitan counties. They did however gain representation on the GLC for the first time, winning two seats at Sutton and Cheam and Richmond upon Thames. This followed the previous year's by-election success in winning the Sutton and Cheam parliamentary seat from the Conservatives.

Independents won two English counties outright: Cornwall and the Isle of Wight. They also formed the largest grouping on a number of other councils, and entered agreements with the Conservatives in the running of some of these. In Wales, Independents controlled three mainly rural counties.[5][6]

The May elections

[edit]

The results of the elections in May saw an improvement in the performance by the Conservatives since the county council elections, and a slight fall back in the Labour vote. The Liberals had a notable success, becoming the largest group on Liverpool council.

The Conservatives took control of five metropolitan districts, gaining seats in areas where they had been beaten in the elections to the county councils. They also gained one Welsh district, Monmouth.

The Labour party declared it was pleased with the results, especially as opinion polls had shown them losing support. They took control of most of the metropolitan districts, making a clean sweep of councils in Tyne and Wear and South Yorkshire and important councils such as Birmingham, Coventry and Manchester. Labour also took control of most districts in South Wales including Cardiff. The party's organiser for Wales also pointed to the fact that official Labour candidates won rural seats in north and west Wales for the first time.

Apart from forming a minority administration in Liverpool, the Liberals were able to hold the balance of power at Leeds, Stockport and Wirral. They were however disappointed with their performance at Calderdale which was won by Labour.[7]

The June elections

[edit]

In the June elections for 296 non-metropolitan districts, Labour won control of 71, the Conservatives 59, the Liberals 1, Democratic Labour 1, and Independents 67. 97 councils were under no overall control: in many of these councils Conservative and Independent groups formed an administration.

The Labour party won 4,327 seats, the Conservatives 4,286, Independents 3,534, and the Liberals 919; with the remaining 449 seats going to various other groupings.

It was a good result for the Liberal party who took control of Eastbourne and became the largest group on Adur, Newbury, Pendle and Waverley councils. The other two main parties also had notable successes: Labour considered control of Cambridge, Dacorum, Ipswich and Oxford to be good results; while the Conservatives celebrated taking Gloucester, Great Yarmouth, Lewes and Warrington councils.[8][9]

The break-away Lincoln Democratic Labour Association won twenty of the thirty seats on Lincoln District council. The group were supporters of Dick Taverne, member of parliament for Lincoln who had been expelled from the Labour Party. Taverne had earlier in the year resigned his seat to force a by-election in protest against his expulsion, which he won against the official Labour candidate.

Results

[edit]

Metropolitan county councils

[edit]
Council Con Lab Lib Ind Others Control
Greater Manchester 23 69 13 1 0 Labour
Merseyside 26 53 19 0 1[a] Labour
South Yorkshire 13 82 1 4 0 Labour
Tyne and Wear 26 74 1 3 0 Labour
West Midlands 26 74 4 0 0 Labour
West Yorkshire 25 51 11 1 0 Labour
  1. ^ Ratepayers

Non-metropolitan county councils

[edit]
Council Con Lab Lib Ind Others Control Details
Avon 36 32 2 3 0 No overall control Details
Bedfordshire 32 39 8 3 1[a] No overall control Details
Berkshire 42 26 13 5 0 No overall control (Conservative-Independent) Details
Buckinghamshire 36 18 4 12 0 Conservative Details
Cambridgeshire 28 22 5 13 0 No overall control Details
Cheshire 31 29 1 6 0 No overall control Details
Cleveland 35 52 0 2 0 Labour Details
Cornwall 3 1 0 75 0 Independent Details
Cumbria 31 38 1 6 0 No overall control Details
Derbyshire 26 60 5 7 0 Labour Details
Devon 54 20 11 12 0 Conservative Details
Dorset 47 13 11 20 0 Conservative Details
Durham 2 56 6 7 0 Labour Details
East Sussex 48 19 9 8 0 Conservative Details
Essex 47 40 5 5 0 No overall control (Conservative minority) Details
Gloucestershire 31 18 5 7 0 Conservative Details
Hampshire 44 27 6 20 0 No overall control (Conservative-Independent) Details
Hereford and Worcester 37 30 8 17 0 No overall control (Conservative-Independent) Details
Hertfordshire 33 33 3 2 1[b] No overall control Details
Humberside 36 51 3 7 2[c] Labour Details
Isle of Wight 6 6 7 23 0 Independent Details
Kent 63 31 7 2 0 Conservative Details
Lancashire 52 33 7 3 1[b] Conservative Details
Leicestershire 41 37 7 8 0 No overall control (Conservative-Independent) Details
Lincolnshire 34 10 3 22 0 No overall control Details
Norfolk 52 27 0 4 0 Conservative Details
North Yorkshire 39 12 12 29 0 No overall control (Conservative-Independent) Details
Northamptonshire 38 46 3 4 2[c] Labour Details
Northumberland 10 28 0 21 0 No overall control Details
Nottinghamshire 35 54 0 0 0 Labour Details
Oxfordshire 36 21 0 10 0 Conservative Details
Salop 14 16 3 30 0 No overall control Details
Somerset 35 7 2 12 0 Conservative Details
Staffordshire 28 47 1 9 0 Labour Details
Suffolk 47 29 3 0 3 Conservative Details
Surrey 46 12 9 5 0 Conservative Details
Warwickshire 27 21 5 2 0 No overall control Details
West Sussex 52 10 7 13 1[b] Conservative Details
Wiltshire 40 22 6 11 0 Conservative Details
  1. ^ Vacancy
  2. ^ a b c Ratepayers
  3. ^ a b Vacancies

Welsh county councils

[edit]
Council Con Lab Lib PC Ind Others Control
Clwyd 11 20 4 0 30 1[a] No overall control
Dyfed 0 29 8 1 40 1[b] Independent
Gwent 12 59 3 1 1 2[b] Labour
Gwynedd 0 4 0 6 56 0 Independent
Mid Glamorgan 3 63 2 6 6 2[c] Labour
Powys             Independent
South Glamorgan 35 42 0 0 3 0 Labour
West Glamorgan 9 52 2 1 4 2[d] Labour
  1. ^ Vacancy
  2. ^ a b Ratepayers
  3. ^ Communist
  4. ^ 1 Progressive Labour, 1 Ratepayers

Greater London Council

[edit]
Main article: 1973 Greater London Council election
Council Con Lab Lib Control
Greater London 32 58 2 Labour

Metropolitan districts

[edit]
Council County Con Lab Lib Ind Others Control Details
Barnsley South Yorkshire 0 57 0 1 2[a] Labour Details
Birmingham West Midlands 44 73 9 0 0 Labour Details
Bolton Greater Manchester 35 31 2 1 0 Conservative Details
Bradford West Yorkshire 53 31 9 0 0 Conservative Details
Bury Greater Manchester 21 20 7 0 0 No overall control Details
Calderdale West Yorkshire 18 28 5 0 0 Labour Details
Coventry West Midlands 12 42 0 0 0 Labour Details
Doncaster South Yorkshire 12 43 0 4 1[b] Labour Details
Dudley West Midlands 24 40 1 1 1[c] Labour Details
Gateshead Tyne and Wear 6 71 0 0 1[d] Labour Details
Kirklees West Yorkshire 18 45 8 1 0 Labour Details
Knowsley Merseyside 6 52 4 0 1[e] Labour Details
Leeds West Yorkshire 38 44 14 0 0 No overall control Details
Liverpool Merseyside 9 42 48 0 0 No overall control (Liberal minority) Details
Manchester Greater Manchester 40 59 0 0 0 Labour Details
Newcastle upon Tyne Tyne and Wear 23 51 1 3 0 Labour Details
North Tyneside Tyne and Wear 19 48 7 4 0 Labour Details
Oldham Greater Manchester 6 42 5 1 3[f] Labour Details
Rochdale Greater Manchester 14 37 9 0 0 Labour Details
Rotherham South Yorkshire 3 50 0 1 0 Labour Details
St Helens Merseyside 9 36 0 0 0 Labour Details
Salford Greater Manchester 15 50 1 0 0 Labour Details
Sandwell West Midlands 24 66 0 0 0 Labour Details
Sefton Merseyside 37 24 3 2 3[g] Conservative Details
Sheffield South Yorkshire 18 69 3 0 0 Labour Details
Solihull West Midlands 28 12 2 9 0 Conservative Details
South Tyneside Tyne and Wear 3 45 0 0 18[h] Labour Details
Stockport Greater Manchester 27 16 13 4 0 No overall control (Conservative-Independent) Details
Sunderland Tyne and Wear 21 56 0 1 0 Labour Details
Tameside Greater Manchester 14 38 2 0 0 Labour Details
Trafford Greater Manchester 32 16 12 0 0 Conservative Details
Wakefield West Yorkshire 6 58 0 1 1 Labour Details
Walsall West Midlands 11 44 0 2 3[g] Labour Details
Wigan Greater Manchester 5 66 0 1 0 Labour Details
Wirral Merseyside 29 24 13 0 0 No overall control Details
Wolverhampton West Midlands 20 40 0 0 0 Labour Details
  1. ^ 1 Independent Labour, 1 Democratic Labour
  2. ^ Democratic Labour
  3. ^ Independent Labour
  4. ^ Rent and Ratepayers
  5. ^ Kirkby Householders Federation
  6. ^ Vacancies
  7. ^ a b Ratepayers
  8. ^ Progressive

Welsh districts

[edit]
Council County Con Lab Lib PC Ind Others Control
Aberconwy Gwynedd 4 3 0 0 34 0 Independent
Alyn-Dee Clwyd 9 25 4 0 7 0 Labour
Afan West Glamorgan 0 21 0 0 0 9[a] Labour
Arfon Gwynedd 0 8 0 5 27 0 Independent
Blaenau Gwent Gwent 0 31 3 1 1 15[b] Labour
Brecknock Powys 4 17 1 0 29 0 Independent
Cardiff South Glamorgan 33 42 0 0 0 0 Labour
Carmarthen Dyfed 0 7 0 0 28 1[c] Independent
Ceredigion Dyfed 0 4 9 0 30 0 Independent
Colwyn Clwyd 1 0 10 0 22 0 Independent
Cynon Valley Mid Glamorgan 0 23 0 12 0 3 Labour
Delyn Clwyd 1 11 0 2 26 0 Independent
Dinefwr Dyfed 0 17 1 0 13 1[d] Labour
Dwyfor Gwynedd 0 0 0 1 28 0 Independent
Glyndŵr Clwyd 0 3 0 0 30 0 Independent
Islwyn Gwent 0 30 0 2 3 1[e] Labour
Llanelli Dyfed 0 29 0 0 4 0 Labour
Lliw Valley West Glamorgan 0 27 0 2 3 0 Labour
Meirionnydd Gwynedd 0 0 0 0 39 0 Independent
Merthyr Tydfil Mid Glamorgan 0 25 0 4 1 3 Labour
Monmouth Gwent 29 9 0 0 1 0 Conservative
Montgomery Powys 0 2 3 0 44 0 Independent
Neath West Glamorgan 0 24 0 2 2 5[f] Labour
Newport Gwent 8 36 2 0 5 0 Labour
Ogwr Mid Glamorgan 6 42 1 1 3 4[g] Labour
Preseli Dyfed 0 0 0 0 43 0 Independent
Radnor Powys 0 0 0 0 31 0 Independent
Rhondda Mid Glamorgan 0 30 0 1 0 2[h] Labour
Rhuddlan Clwyd 9 4 1 0 22 0 Independent
Rhymney Valley Mid Glamorgan 0 38 0 4 2 4[c] Labour
South Pembrokeshire Dyfed 0 0 0 1 30 0 Independent
Swansea West Glamorgan 12 30 1 0 3 5[i] Labour
Taff-Ely Mid Glamorgan 0 30 4 2 7 4[c] Labour
Torfaen Gwent 0 36 0 0 2 5[j] Labour
Vale of Glamorgan South Glamorgan 15 23 0 0 11 0 No overall control (Conservative-Independent)
Wrexham Maelor Clwyd 4 24 2 1 14 0 Labour
Ynys Môn (Anglesey) Gwynedd 0 4 0 0 41 0 Independent
  1. ^ 5 Ratepayers, 3 Tenants Association, 1 Unofficial Labour
  2. ^ 7 Independent Labour, 7 Ratepayers, 1 Tenants and Residents
  3. ^ a b c Ratepayers
  4. ^ Independent Socialist
  5. ^ Communist
  6. ^ 1 Ratepayers, 4 vacancies
  7. ^ 3 Ratepayers, 1 Independent Labour
  8. ^ 1 Ratepayers, 1 Communist
  9. ^ 3 Independent Ratepayers, 2 Ratepayers
  10. ^ 3 Rent and Ratepayers, Communist 2

Non-metropolitan districts

[edit]
Avon
[edit]
Council Con Lab Lib Ind Others Control Details
Bath 19 17 9 0 0 No overall control Details
Bristol 25 56 3 0 0 Labour Details
Kingswood 4 19 6 6 10 No overall control Details
Northavon 26 19 1 1 3[a] No overall control Details
Wansdyke 12 22 0 11 0 No overall control (Conservative-Independent) Details
Woodspring 40 10 3 8 0 Conservative Details
  1. ^ 1 Residents Association, 2 vacancies
Bedfordshire
[edit]
Council Con Lab Lib Ind Control Details
Bedford 20 22 2 12 No overall control (Conservative-Independent) Details
Luton 12 30 6 0 Labour Details
Mid Bedfordshire 5 8 1 35 Independent Details
South Bedfordshire 17 13 8 7 No overall control Details
Berkshire
[edit]
Council Con Lab Lib Ind Others Control Details
Bracknell 9 17 1 1 3[a] Labour Details
Newbury 10 1 24 22 0 No overall control Details
Reading 16 16 14 0 0 No overall control Details
Slough 2 34 4 0 0 Labour Details
Windsor and Maidenhead 53 3 0 3 0 Conservative Details
Wokingham 23 0 13 15 1[a] No overall control (Conservative-Independent) Details
  1. ^ a b Ratepayers
Buckinghamshire
[edit]
Council Con Lab Lib Ind Others Control Details
Aylesbury Vale 10 12 1 31 0 Independent Details
Beaconsfield 27 1 3 9 2 Conservative Details
Chiltern 26 11 0 7 7[a] Conservative Details
Milton Keynes 8 27 0 5 0 Labour Details
Wycombe 30 12 3 10 4 Conservative Details
  1. ^ 4 Residents, 3 Ratepayers
Cambridgeshire
[edit]
Council Con Lab Lib Ind Others Control Details
Cambridge 11 26 5 0 0 Labour Details
East Cambridgeshire 0 1 0 33 1[a] Independent Details
Fenland 18 8 0 14 0 No overall control (Conservative-Independent) Details
Huntingdon 15 9 0 26 0 Independent Details
Peterborough 19 28 1 0 0 Labour Details
South Cambridgeshire 0 7 3 43 0 Independent Details
  1. ^ Vacancy
Cheshire
[edit]
Council Con Lab Lib Ind Others Control Details
Chester 43 15 0 4 0 Conservative Details
Congleton 20 12 1 11 1[a] No overall control Details
Crewe 2 35 2 21 0 Labour Details
Ellesmere Port 14 27 0 1 0 Labour Details
Halton 8 30 1 3 1[b] Labour Details
Macclesfield 25 10 10 12 5[a] No overall control Details
Vale Royal 10 16 6 25 0 No overall control (Independent-Conservative) Details
Warrington 32 22 3 3 0 Conservative Details
  1. ^ a b Ratepayers
  2. ^ Moderate Party
Cleveland
[edit]
Council Con Lab Ind Control Details
Hartlepool 15 30 1 Labour Details
Langbaurgh 27 32 5 No overall control Details
Middlesbrough 17 39 0 Labour Details
Stockton-on-Tees 25 33 2 Labour Details
Cornwall
[edit]
Council Con Lab Lib Ind Control Details
Caradon 0 0 0 41 Independent Details
Carrick 4 5 4 32 Independent Details
Kerrier 5 3 0 34 Independent Details
North Cornwall 0 0 3 23 Independent Details
Penwith 0 1 1 38 Independent Details
Restormel 0 0 2 36 Independent Details
Cumbria
[edit]
Council Con Lab Lib Ind Others Control Details
Allerdale 4 25 0 27 0 No overall control (Independent-Conservative) Details
Barrow-in-Furness 6 25 0 2 0 Labour Details
Carlisle 12 25 1 10 0 Labour Details
Copeland 6 30 0 12 0 Labour Details
Eden 0 0 0 37 0 Independent Details
South Lakeland 7 2 7 37 1[a] Independent Details
  1. ^ Independent Conservative
Derbyshire
[edit]
Council Con Lab Lib Ind Others Control Details
Amber Valley 4 32 3 0 21 Labour Details
Bolsover 1 28 0 4 3 Labour Details
Chesterfield 7 45 2 0 0 Labour Details
Derby 14 34 6 0 0 Labour Details
Erewash 9 36 5 4 0 Labour Details
High Peak 23 11 2 10 0 No overall control (Conservative-Independent) Details
North East Derbyshire 10 32 0 9 0 Labour Details
South Derbyshire 4 18 0 13 0 Labour Details
West Derbyshire 18 5 4 13 0 No overall control (Conservative-Independent) Details
Devon
[edit]
Council Con Lab Lib Ind Others Control Details
East Devon 14 1 3 42 0 Independent Details
Exeter 14 13 6 1 0 No overall control
North Devon 0 1 15 28 0 Independent Details
Plymouth 37 29 0 0 0 Conservative Details
South Hams 2 0 0 40 0 Independent Details
Teignbridge 0 7 0 48 1[a] Independent Details
Tiverton 0 3 5 32 0 Independent Details
Torbay 30 6 0 0 0 Conservative Details
Torridge 0 1 6 29 0 Independent Details
West Devon 0 0 0 30 0 Independent Details
  1. ^ Independent Trade Unionist
Dorset
[edit]
Council Con Lab Lib Ind Others Control Details
Bournemouth 38 14 3 2 0 Conservative Details
Christchurch 10 4 5 1 0 No overall control (Conservative-Independent) Details
North Dorset 0 0 4 27 0 Independent Details
Poole 22 3 9 2 0 Conservative Details
Purbeck 5 3 0 13 0 Independent Details
West Dorset 0 2 9 44 0 Independent Details
Weymouth and Portland 18 21 0 0 0 Labour Details
Wimborne 2 0 9 21 1[a] Independent Details
  1. ^ Vacancy
Durham
[edit]
Council Con Lab Lib Ind Others Control Details
Chester-le-Street 0 23 6 4 0 Labour Details
Darlington 8 28 8 5 0 Labour Details
Derwentside 1 45 5 3 3 Labour Details
Durham 0 40 7 14 0 Labour Details
Easington 0 56 0 3 1[a] Labour Details
Sedgefield 1 40 4 8 0 Labour Details
Teesdale 0 0 0 29 0 Independent Details
Wear Valley 0 21 9 10 1[b] Labour Details
  1. ^ Independent Labour
  2. ^ People's Representative
East Sussex
[edit]
Council Con Lab Lib Ind Others Control Details
Brighton 31 28 0 0 0 Conservative Details
Eastbourne 10 4 19 0 0 Liberal Details
Hastings 12 11 9 1 0 No overall control Details
Hove 24 6 0 3 3[a] Conservative Details
Lewes 26 10 0 6 5[b] Conservative Details
Rother 9 5 1 30 0 Independent Details
Wealden 25 1 2 23 5 No overall control (Conservative-Independent) Details
  1. ^ Vacancies
  2. ^ Ratepayers
Essex
[edit]
Council Con Lab Lib Ind Others Control Details
Basildon 9 31 0 0 6 Labour Details
Braintree 14 19 1 21 1[a] No overall control (Independent-Conservative) Details
Brentwood 24 11 1 2 0 Conservative Details
Castle Point 19 20 0 0 0 Labour Details
Chelmsford 31 16 8 5 0 Conservative Details
Colchester 28 27 1 4 0 No overall control (Conservative-Independent) Details
Epping Forest 44 10 0 5 0 Conservative Details
Harlow 0 38 4 0 0 Labour Details
Maldon 9 4 3 14 0 No overall control Details
Rochford 19 12 1 8 0 No overall control Details
Southend-on-Sea 24 13 11 0 0 No overall control Details
Tendring 31 4 11 11 3[a] Conservative Details
Thurrock 13 33 0 3 0 Labour Details
Uttlesford 21 7 2 12 0 No overall control (Conservative-Independent) Details
  1. ^ a b Ratepayers
Gloucestershire
[edit]
Council Con Lab Lib Ind Others Control Details
Cheltenham 21 7 4 2 2[a] Conservative Details
Cotswold 1 2 0 42 0 Independent Details
Forest of Dean 0 21 1 25 0 No overall control Details
Gloucester 21 12 0 0 0 Conservative Details
Stroud 14 14[b] 8 17 3[c] No overall control Details
Tewkesbury 22 0 3 26 0 Independent Details
  1. ^ Ratepayers
  2. ^ Including 2 Labour & Co-Operative
  3. ^ Vacancies
Hampshire
[edit]
Council Con Lab Lib Ind Others Control Details
Basingstoke 18 14 3 20 0 No overall control (Independent-Conservative) Details
Eastleigh 13 20 5 4 0 No overall control Details
Fareham 16 2 5 2 11[a] No overall control (Conservative-Ratepayers) Details
Gosport 9 19 0 2 1[a] Labour Details
Hartley Wintney 7 0 0 23 3 Independent Details
Havant 8 8 10 4 12[a] No overall control Details
New Forest 12 1 5 37 3 Independent Details
Petersfield 16 6 0 20 0 No overall control Details
Portsmouth 28 17 0 3 0 Conservative Details
Rushmoor 20 9 7 0 7[a] No overall control Details
Southampton 20 31 0 0 0 Labour Details
Test Valley 10 5 7 21 0 No overall control Details
Winchester 14 5 5 25 2[b] No overall control (Conservative-Independent) Details
  1. ^ a b c d Ratepayers
  2. ^ 1 Ratepayers, 1 Tenants
Hereford and Worcester
[edit]
Council Con Lab Lib Ind Others Control Details
Bromsgrove 25 13 0 0 4[a] Conservative Details
Hereford 0 10 8 3 3[b] No overall control Details
Leominster 1 2 0 33 0 Independent Details
Malvern Hills 1 2 11 8 23 No overall control Details
Redditch 6 19 0 0 0 No overall control Details
South Herefordshire 1 0 0 35 0 Independent Details
Worcester 18 18 0 0 0 No overall control Details
Wychavon 10 4 2 29 0 Independent Details
Wyre Forest 30 20 9 1 2[a] No overall control Details
  1. ^ a b Ratepayers
  2. ^ Independent Conservative
Hertfordshire
[edit]
Council Con Lab Lib Ind Others Control Details
Broxbourne 28 12 0 0 0 Conservative Details
Dacorum 26 33 0 3 0 Labour Details
East Hertfordshire 16 10 0 16 6 No overall control (Conservative-Independent) Details
Hertsmere 25 17 13 0 0 No overall control Details
North Hertfordshire 23 17 0 7 1[a] No overall control Details
St Albans 32 14 7 1 0 Conservative Details
Stevenage 3 31 0 0 0 Labour Details
Three Rivers 19 12 13 0 0 No overall control Details
Watford 9 21 6 0 0 Labour Details
Welwyn Hatfield 19 24 0 0 0 Labour Details
  1. ^ Ratepayers
Humberside
[edit]
Council Con Lab Lib Ind Others Control Details
Beverley 16 1 7 36 0 Independent Details
Boothferry 4 5 0 26 0 Independent Details
Cleethorpes 9 14 6 19 0 No overall control (Independent-Conservative) Details
Glanford 0 1 0 33 0 Independent Details
Grimsby 14 20 7 1 0 No overall control Details
Holderness 0 0 0 29 0 Independent Details
Kingston-upon-Hull 8 55 0 0 0 Labour Details
North Wolds 3 2 1 37 0 Independent Details
Scunthorpe 4 35 0 0 1[a] Labour Details
  1. ^ Independent Labour
Isle of Wight
[edit]
Council Con Lab Lib Ind Others Control Details
Medina 3 10 4 13 3[a] No overall control Details
South Wight 1 0 1 22 0 Independent Details
  1. ^ Ratepayers
Kent
[edit]
Council Con Lab Lib Ind Others Control Details
Ashford 22 8 10 4 0 No overall control (Conservative-Independent) Details
Canterbury 34 5 2 5 3[a] Conservative Details
Dartford 14 30 0 0 0 Labour Details
Dover 29 21 0 5 0 Conservative Details
Gillingham 13 14 8 0 0 No overall control Details
Gravesham 15 28 0 0 1[a] Labour Details
Maidstone 13 12 19 9 7 No overall control Details
Medway 22 32 5 0 0 Labour Details
Sevenoaks 28 6 6 14 0 Conservative Details
Shepway 33 12 1 8 0 Conservative Details
Swale 17 25 3 5 0 No overall control Details
Thanet 33 14 5 11 0 Conservative Details
Tonbridge and Malling 30 11 8 4 0 Conservative Details
Tunbridge Wells 29 7 2 9 0 Conservative Details
  1. ^ a b Ratepayers
Lancashire
[edit]
Council Con Lab Lib Ind Others Control Details
Blackburn 19 27 11 3 0 No overall control Details
Blackpool 40 10 3 3 0 Conservative Details
Burnley 12 39 1 2 0 Labour Details
Chorley 17 21 0 7 2[a] No overall control Details
Fylde 28 2 2 4 9 Conservative Details
Hyndburn 21 24 3 0 0 No overall control Details
Lancaster 32 18 1 6 3[b] Conservative Details
Pendle 6 19 23 2 7 No overall control Details
Preston 19 38 0 0 0 Labour Details
Ribble Valley 30 1 0 7 0 Conservative Details
Rossendale 17 15 4 0 0 No overall control Details
South Ribble 30 16 2 1 0 Conservative Details
West Lancashire 10 23 3 14 0 No overall control Details
Wyre 45 2 0 8 0 Conservative Details
  1. ^ Independent Labour
  2. ^ Ratepayers
Leicestershire
[edit]
Council Con Lab Lib Ind Others Control Details
Blaby 8 0 7 20 0 Independent Details
Bosworth 4 14 8 13 0 No overall control Details
Charnwood 28 14 5 13 0 No overall control (Conservative-Independent) Details
Harborough 37 28 2 0 0 Conservative Details
Leicester 11 37 0 0 0 Labour Details
Melton 12 2 0 6 4 No overall control Details
North West Leicestershire 8 25 0 10 0 Labour Details
Oadby and Wigston 18 7 5 3 0 Conservative Details
Rutland 0 0 0 20 0 Independent Details
Lincolnshire
[edit]
Council Con Lab Lib Ind Others Control Details
Boston 9 5 5 15 0 No overall control (Independent-Conservative) Details
East Lindsey 5 1 3 5 44[a] Non Party Details
Lincoln 6 1 0 3 20[b] Democratic Labour Details
North Kesteven 8 2 0 27 0 Independent Details
South Holland 6 2 0 27 0 Independent Details
South Kesteven 13 12 0 9 21 No overall control Details
West Lindsey 1 5 6 25 0 Independent Details
  1. ^ 2 Independent Conservative, 42 others
  2. ^ Democratic Labour
Norfolk
[edit]
Council Con Lab Lib Ind Others Control Details
Breckland 19 10 0 21 1[a] No overall control (Independent-Conservative) Details
Broadland 19 6 0 24 0 No overall control (Independent-Conservative) Details
Great Yarmouth 26 17 2 3 0 Conservative Details
Norwich 11 37 0 0 0 Labour Details
Pastonacres 6 4 0 37 0 Independent Details
South Norfolk 6 7 1 33 0 Independent Details
West Norfolk 14 22 0 24 0 No overall control (Independent-Conservative) Details
  1. ^ Independent Conservative
North Yorkshire
[edit]
Council Con Lab Lib Ind Others Control Details
Craven 14 6 9 6 0 No overall control (Conservative-Independent) Details
Hambleton 4 1 1 42 0 Independent Details
Harrogate 35 2 15 7 1[a] Conservative Details
Richmondshire 0 0 0 35 0 Independent Details
Ryedale 0 5 0 40 0 Independent Details
Scarborough 15 5 11 16 1[a] No overall control Details
Selby 16 7 0 20 1[a] Independent Details
York 17 17 5 0 0 No overall control Details
  1. ^ a b c Vacancy
Northamptonshire
[edit]
Council Con Lab Lib Ind Others Control Details
Corby 1 29 0 2 1[a] Labour Details
Daventry 16 9 0 10 0 No overall control (Conservative-Independent) Details
East Northamptonshire 5 14 0 0 17 No overall control Details
Kettering 14 16 7 8 0 No overall control Details
Northampton 23 25 0 0 0 Labour Details
South Northamptonshire 15 2 2 17 0 No overall control (Independent-Conservative) Details
Wellingborough 14 13 0 5 1[b] No overall control Details
  1. ^ Independent Socialist
  2. ^ Ratepayers
Northumberland
[edit]
Council Con Lab Lib Ind Others Control Details
Alnwick 0 4 0 24 0 Independent Details
Berwick-upon-Tweed 0 2 0 26 0 Independent Details
Blyth Valley 5 29 12 12 2 Labour Details
Castle Morpeth 11 7 2 13 1[a] No overall control (Independent-Conservative) Details
Tynedale 4 10 3 25 3 Independent Details
Wansbeck 0 44 0 1 0 Labour Details
  1. ^ Ratepayers
Nottinghamshire
[edit]
Council Con Lab Ind Others Control Details
Ashfield 1 52 2 0 Labour Details
Bassetlaw 11 29 10 1 Labour Details
Broxtowe 24 20 1 1[a] Conservative Details
Gedling 32 19 0 4[b] Conservative Details
Mansfield 7 38 0 0 Labour Details
Newark 20 29 3 0 Labour Details
Nottingham 10 44 0 0 Labour Details
Rushcliffe 42 3 3 1 Conservative Details
  1. ^ Socialist Independent
  2. ^ Independent Ratepayers
Oxfordshire
[edit]
Council Con Lab Lib Ind Others Control Details
Cherwell 15 16 0 14 0 No overall control (Conservative-Independent) Details
Oxford 12 30 3 0 0 Labour Details
Vale of White Horse 27 8 3 10 0 Conservative Details
Wallingford 25 9 7 20 1[a] No overall control (Conservative-Independent) Details
West Oxfordshire 1 7 1 35 1[b] Independent Details
  1. ^ Progressive Independent
  2. ^ Independent Liberal
Salop
[edit]
Council Con Lab Lib Ind Others Control Details
Bridgnorth 0 0 1 31 0 Independent Details
North Shropshire 0 1 2 36 0 Independent Details
Oswestry 0 1 3 18 0 Independent Details
Shrewsbury 12 15 7 11 0 No overall control Details
South Shropshire 0 0 1 35 0 Independent Details
Wrekin 8 32 0 14 1[a] Labour Details
  1. ^ Independent Labour
Somerset
[edit]
Council Con Lab Lib Ind Others Control Details
Mendip 11 7 2 23 1[a] Independent Details
Sedgemoor 19 14 3 12 0 No overall control Details
Taunton Deane 21 14 0 13 0 No overall control Details
West Somerset 3 1 1 27 0 Independent Details
Yeovil 20 8 2 30 0 No overall control (Independent-Conservative) Details
  1. ^ Vacancy
Staffordshire
[edit]
Council Con Lab Lib Ind Others Control Details
Cannock Chase 1 36 0 0 0 Labour Details
East Staffordshire 22 24 0 14 0 No overall control (Conservative-Independent) Details
Lichfield 17 25 0 11 1[a] No overall control Details
Newcastle-under-Lyme 15 31 2 14 0 No overall control Details
South Staffordshire 22 8 1 15 2 No overall control (Conservative-Independent) Details
Stafford 18 15 0 23 1[b] No overall control Details
Staffordshire Moorlands 12 14 2 26 0 No overall control (Independent minority) Details
Stoke-on-Trent 8 60 3 1 0 Labour Details
Tamworth 0 18 0 6 0 Labour Details
  1. ^ Ratepayers
  2. ^ Independent Labour
Suffolk
[edit]
Council Con Lab Lib Ind Others Control Details
Babergh 7 11 0 20 0 Independent Details
Forest Heath 12 0 0 3 10[a] No overall control (Conservative-Independent) Details
Ipswich 11 36 0 0 0 Labour Details
Mid Suffolk 6 9 1 24 0 Independent Details
St Edmundsbury 26 11 0 6 1[b] Conservative Details
Suffolk Coastal 27 9 0 18 1[b] No overall control Details
Waveney 22 27 5 2 0 No overall control Details
  1. ^ 9 others, 1 vacancy
  2. ^ a b Independent Conservative
Surrey
[edit]
Council Con Lab Lib Ind Others Control Details
Elmbridge 39 7 5 0 14[a] Conservative Details
Epsom and Ewell 0 3 0 0 37[a] Ratepayers Details
Guildford 29 6 5 2 0 Conservative Details
Mole Valley 16 3 5 9 9[b] No overall control Details
Reigate and Banstead 29 15 4 2 0 Conservative Details
Runnymede 23 15 0 2 0 Conservative Details
Spelthorne 39 13 0 0 0 Conservative Details
Surrey Heath 35 0 0 1 0 Conservative Details
Tandridge 26 3 10 3 0 Conservative Details
Waverley 28 2 25 6 0 No overall control Details
Woking 19 12 1 0 0 Conservative Details
  1. ^ a b Ratepayers
  2. ^ Residents
Warwickshire
[edit]
Council Con Lab Lib Ind Others Control Details
North Warwickshire 8 19 0 4 2[a] Labour Details
Nuneaton 7 26 2 0 0 Labour Details
Rugby 22 18 3 2 3[a] No overall control Details
Stratford-on-Avon 15 2 5 32 0 Independent Details
Warwick 26 25 7 0 0 No overall control Details
  1. ^ a b Ratepayers
West Sussex
[edit]
Council Con Lab Lib Ind Others Control Details
Adur 13 6 16 0 4[a] No overall control Details
Arun 33 4 4 5 1 Conservative Details
Chichester 18 1 6 22 3[b] No overall control Details
Crawley 5 25 0 1 1[c] Labour Details
Horsham 18 0 2 23 0 Independent Details
Mid Sussex 25 3 5 21 0 No overall control (Conservative-Independent) Details
Worthing 17 1 0 12 0 Conservative Details
  1. ^ Shoreham Beach Residents Association
  2. ^ Residents
  3. ^ Ratepayers
Wiltshire
[edit]
Council Con Lab Lib Ind Others Control Details
Kennet 7 0 2 28 0 Independent Details
North Wiltshire 24 4 7 11 0 Conservative Details
Salisbury 16 13 8 17 4[a] No overall control Details
Thamesdown 18 26 0 2 0 Labour Details
West Wiltshire 13 10 2 17 0 No overall control (Independent-Conservative) Details
  1. ^ 2 Ratepayers, 2 vacancies

Future elections

[edit]

The next county council elections took place in 1977.

Future elections to Metropolitan District councils were to be by thirds, with the one third of seats being elected in 1975.

The next election of non-metropolitan district councils and Welsh district councils was to in 1976.[10]

Northern Ireland

[edit]
Main article: 1973 Northern Ireland local elections

Local government in Northern Ireland was reorganised in 1973 by the Local Government (Boundaries) Act (Northern Ireland) 1971 and the Local Government Act (Northern Ireland) 1972. The county councils, county borough and municipal borough corporations and urban and rural district councils were replaced by twenty-six Local Government districts. Elections took place for all the seats on the district councils on 30 May, and the councils came into their power in 1 October.[11][12][13][14]

District Official
Unionist 		Democratic
Unionist 		Vanguard
Unionist 		Loyalist
Coalition 		Independent
Unionist 		SDLP Republican
Clubs 		Nationalist
and Unity
Parties 		Alliance Northern Ireland
Labour Party 		Others Control
Antrim 8 1 1 0 1 1 0 0 2 0 Independent 2 NOC (Unionist)
Ards 11 0 0 1 1 0 0 0 2 1 Independent 1 Official Unionist
Armagh 10 2 0 0 1 4 1 0 1 0 Independent 1 NOC (Unionist)
Ballymena 9 5 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 Independent 2

Non-Party 3

NOC (Unionist)
Ballymoney 4 1 0 2 2 0 0 0 0 1 Independent 1
Non-Party 5 		NOC
Banbridge 8 0 0 0 3 1 0 0 0 0 Independent 3 NOC (Unionist)
Belfast 25 2 1 0 2 7 2 0 8 2 Unionist Loyalist 2 NOC (Unionist)
Carrickfergus 5 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 Unionist Loyalist 5

Loyalist 1
Non-Party 1

NOC (Unionist)
Castlereagh 8 0 0 1 2 0 0 0 5 0 Unionist Loyalist 2
Independent 1 		NOC (Unionist)
Coleraine 12 0 0 0 2 1 0 0 3 0 Independent 1
Non-party 1 		Official Unionist
Cookstown 7 0 0 1 1 3 1 0 0 0 Independent 1
Non-Party 1 		NOC (Unionist)
Craigavon 7 3 2 3 3 2 0 0 4 0 Independent 1 NOC (Unionist)
Down 8 0 1 0 0 8 0 0 2 0 Independent 1 NOC
Dungannon 11 0 0 0 0 5 0 Unity 2
Republican 2 		0 0 0 Official Unionist
Fermanagh 5 0 0 0 3 4 0 Unity 4 0 0 Independent 1
Unionist Unity 2
Non-Party 1 		NOC
Larne 1 0 0 8 0 0 0 0 3 0 Independent 2
Non-Party 1 		Loyalist
Limavady 0 0 0 0 0 4 0 0 2 0 United Unionists 8
Independent 1 		United Unionists
Lisburn 14 4 1 0 0 1 0 0 3 0 0 Official Unionist
Londonderry 0 0 0 United Loyalists 9 0 10 1 Nationalist 3 0 0 0 NOC (Nationalist)
Magherafelt 4 0 1 United Loyalist 1 0 6 1 0 0 0 Independent 1 NOC
Moyle 4 0 0 0 1 2 0 0 0 0 Independent 5
Non-Party 4 		NOC
Newry and Mourne 3 0 0 0 0 13 2 0 0 0 Non-Party 6
Independent 2 		NOC
Newtownabbey 9 3 0 0 Unionist 3
United Loyalist 1
Loyalist 1 		0 0 0 3 1 0 NOC (Unionist)
North Down 9 0 0 Loyalist 3 0 0 0 7 0 0 0 NOC
Omagh 6 0 0 0 Unionist Unity 2 4 0 Nationalist 1
Official Republican 1 		0 0 3 Non-Party Community NOC
Strabane 6 0 0 Unionist Coalition 1 0 4 0 0 0 0 Independent 2 NOC

Scotland

[edit]
Main article: 1973 Scottish local elections

Local elections were also held in Scotland in 1973. At the time of the election, Scotland was the only part of the UK in which local government had yet to be reformed, with the Local Government (Scotland) Act 1973 only receiving Royal Assent in October 1973. The election saw Labour maintaining their control of Aberdeen, Glasgow, and Dundee, although failing to make gains in Edinburgh.

References

[edit]
  1. ^ Rallings, Colin; Thrasher, Michael. Local Elections Handbook 1973. The Elections Centre. Retrieved 3 May 2016.
  2. ^ "Council compositions". The Elections Centre. Retrieved 3 May 2016.
  3. ^ "Councils offered five more months before changes". The Times. 18 February 1972.
  4. ^ "Election dates in 1973 for new local councils". The Times. 26 May 1972.
  5. ^ "Labour sweep to victory in London and all six of the metropolitan counties". The Times. 13 April 1973.
  6. ^ "Labour take over metropolitan counties and 11 other councils". The Times. 14 April 1973.
  7. ^ "Three major parties find cause for satisfaction in local election results despite low poll". The Times. 14 May 1973.
  8. ^ "Final poll result may lie with Independents". The Times. 8 June 1973.
  9. ^ "Liberals capture Eastbourne and exceed ambition to win 1,000 local government seats". The Times. 8 June 1973.
  10. ^ Local Government Act 1972, sections 7 and 26
  11. ^ Damkat, Ivo (29 October 2003). "The 1973 Local Government Elections". www.ark.ac.uk. Economic and Social Research Council.
  12. ^ "Big Roman Catholic turnout in poll despite threats". The Times. 31 May 1973.
  13. ^ "Party accused over Ulster poll". The Times. 31 May 1973.
  14. ^ "Unionist supporters elect many hard-line men in Ulster local government poll". The Times. 2 June 1973.
Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=1973_United_Kingdom_local_elections&oldid=1252922511"