By Niva Yadav

Copyright standard

Pro-Palestine Independents have won another council seat from Labour as confidence in Sir Keir Starmer’s party continues to dwindle.

The Newham Independent party achieved a crushing victory to win the Plaistow South seat on Newham Council on Thursday.

Its candidate Md Nazrul Islam won 913 votes, more than double the Labour candidate Asheem Singh (436).

The Plaistow seat was made vacant in July following the death of Labour councillor Neil Wilson, who had been an elected member for more than three decades.

Reform came in third with Lazar Monu winning 329 votes, followed by the Green Party’s Nic Motte (152) and the Local Conservatives (123).

In a post on X, the Newham Independents described the win as “a stunning victory”, adding that the party “will continue to build on this victory going into the elections in May 2026”.

Mr Islam becomes the party’s fourth member on the council, where they have now formed an official opposition.

Labour has lost several other council by-elections across London since the party’s general election victory in July last year. Green, Liberal Democract, and Independent candidates across the capital are hoping to capitalise on the simmering anger over the party’s handling of the war in Gaza, as well as rising bills, ahead of a full set of local elections set to take place in May.

The Prime Minister is expected to offiicialy recognise the state of Palestine this month. But the promise of the move has not stopped Pro-Gaza candidates beating Labour in council polls.

Ilford Independent Noor Jahan Begun beat Labour’s Jas Athwal to win the Redbridge council seat in London in March.

The Lib Dems won the West Hampstead seat on Camden council last month, with a Lib Dem source putting the win down to a “Gaza backlash” in the Prime Minister’s “own backyard”. In West London, Independent Theo Dennison won the Syon and Brentford Lock seat on Hounslow Council by just 12 votes in March.

The Tories also claimed the Vincent Square ward seat on Westminster Council earlier this year amid a row over Sadiq Khan’s plans for Westminser and concerns about traffic changes in Februrary.

In other local by-elections held across the UK on Thursday, Labour lost a seat to the Green Party in Brighton and Hove and to Reform on Cardiff Council. The party narrowly held a seat on Warwick council, despite their vote share failing 21 percentage points.

The party is trailing Nigel Farage’s Reform UK in opinion polls and questions are now being asked about Sir Keir’s leadership. Greater Manchester Mayor Andy Burnham and health secretary Wes Streeting have both been mooted as potential replacements should the Prime Minister be ousted as Labour leader.