In stark contrast to a bruising night for the Conservatives nationwide, local Conservative figures in Buckinghamshire are claiming a rare glimmer of success after a surprisingly tight election result in the county.
While the party suffered widespread losses across the country, Buckinghamshire delivered a near dead-heat result, defying the national trend. Speaking after the count, former Conservative Counncil Leader, Martin Tett, acknowledged the national defeat but expressed cautious optimism about the local outcome.
“It’s been a really bad day for the Conservatives, obviously,” he admitted. “But we’re pretty much neck and neck here in Buckinghamshire, so we’ve completely bucked the trend.”
Despite the relatively strong showing, no party has emerged with a working majority on the council, leading to uncertainty about its future leadership and policy direction. The Conservatives are just one seat short of gaining control, but concerns have been raised about the challenges ahead without a more stable majority.
“There’s going to be some really tough decisions coming up — the local plan, finance — so you really do need a bigger majority than just skin-of-the-teeth,” Mr Tett told Bucks Radio.
While national politics has cast a long shadow over local campaigning, the Conservative figure emphasized that local issues such as schools, roads, and waste collection remained the focus of their platform. “On the doorstep, people really like what we provide locally,” they said. “But the shadow that’s hung over it is the national picture for both the main parties.”
With no clear leadership emerging from the fractured results, the path forward remains unclear. Speculation around potential coalitions has already begun, but the local Conservative voice expressed strong reluctance to join forces with other parties.
“I would really hesitate with any coalition with another political party like Reform or even the Lib Dems — we’ve seen what happens when you do that,” Martin warned.
Mid Bucks Conservative, MP. Greg Smith, told Bucks Radio, that he thought it possible for the Conservatives to run a minority council.
As the dust settles, all eyes will be on how Buckinghamshire navigates its next steps amid national political upheaval and local uncertainty.
Martin Tett full intervew:
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