How did the Tories hold on to Harlow?

One of the biggest results in last week's local elections was in Harlow, where the Conservative Party not only held on to power at district level, but increased its majority.

The Tories defended all of their seats - and took five from Labour - meaning they hold two-thirds of the seats on Harlow Council.

The result was in stark contrast to the rest of Essex, where Reform UK took control of the county council and Thurrock Council as well.

So how did the Conservatives do so well in the town? The BBC spoke to residents in a cafe in Newhall, on the eastern edge of town.

It only takes a short walk around Harlow town centre to see how much regeneration work is going on.

New restaurants, shops and homes are coming to Market Square, supported by £24m of government funding.

There is also the £15m revamp of the bus station, and a £34m arts and cultural quarter around the Playhouse theatre.

Harlow was designated as a post-war new town in 1947 and underwent huge expansion as people moved there, mainly from bomb-damaged London.

The town has been one of Essex's many "bellwether" parliamentary constituencies, with Labour winning it back from the Conservatives at the 2024 general election.

Harlow Council was Labour-controlled from its inception in 1974 until 2002, and it has flipped between Labour and Conservative since then, with the latter keeping control two years ago and again this year.

Anne Nicol, born and bred in Harlow, said the town "has never been brilliant", losing big stores including Woolworths and Marks & Spencer, although the latter is due to return.

"I'm very passionate about Harlow - I think it has a lot to offer," she said, and praised the previous regeneration of the Water Gardens.

"In Harlow, people have always been slightly underestimated, and I think deep down that there's a lot of good people and we just want a nice place to live."

Tracie Sullivan, who has run the New Ground cafe for seven years with her husband, agreed that Harlow was "driving forward", but called for more support for smaller businesses, which she said "are the heart of the community".

"Let's hope that regeneration filters down to the small people as well," she said.

Emma Robinson, 57, said she was "very nervous" when she heard Clacton MP and Reform leader Nigel Farage was targeting Harlow and visited during the election campaign.

"I voted on local issues," she said and added that Harlow "has its problems like everywhere".

"[Council leader] Dan Swords - he's got a long way to go, but he has made a lot of positive difference to Harlow," the Church Langley resident added.

Her friend Sally Clark, also from Church Langley, gave similar praise to the council's Conservative leader having seen him campaigning in the town.

"I can see changes happening - what he says, he does, so that is why I voted [Conservative]," she said.

Dave Parry - who has lived in Old Harlow for about 40 years - said he was a traditional Labour voter but he was pleased the Conservatives had won in Harlow "because at least Reform didn't".

He said he knew of several people voting Conservative who had never voted in the local elections before, and there had possibly been a protest vote against Nigel Farage's party.

"I think there's been a lot of misinformation nationally about what the local elections actually mean," Parry said.

"People have thought that they can sort out the national issues by voting for local elections, and that is not what the local elections are for."

Council leader Swords said the result was a "vindication of what we've been doing over the past five years".

"It wasn't just a message of a better future that we set out [in the elections], it was reality. People can see the town getting better, they can see the regeneration," he said.

When asked by the BBC what the national Conservative Party could learn from Harlow, Swords said they should "take heart".

"I think people are becoming far less tribal about their politics," he said.

"Far too often, politicians up and down the country are failing to deliver on their promises, failing to improve people's lives.

"What we've shown in Harlow is if you can set out that ambitious vision and, importantly, make it happen, people are prepared to vote for it."

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