Britain's Labour Party may be bracing for "one of its worst" local election performances this year, a leaked poll passed to the BBC revealed on Monday.
The documents predicts a "bounce in the polls for the Tories", adding that the party "fully" expects to "lose hard-working councillors".
— Gabriel Pogrund (@Gabriel_Pogrund) March 3, 2020
Polling research in the documents revealed three scenarios, with the worst-case showing Labour losing nine councils.
All scenarios showed losses in Plymouth, Harlow in Essex, Amber Valley in Derbyshire, Southampton, Sheffield and West Lancashire, LabourList reported, adding that the party may only gain Wirral and Burnley.
A Labour Party spokesperson said that the party recognised the "scale of the challenge" faced on election day, or 7 May, but would "be fighting for every vote in the local elections".
— James Foster (@JamesEFoster) March 3, 2020
The spokesperson added: "The document does note that, given that Labour will have a new leader by the time of the elections, “there may be changes in the level of support for the major parties.
The news comes as the new party leader, which could potentially be Kier Starmer, Rebecca Long-Bailey or Lisa Nandy, will step in to replace former leader Jeremy Corbyn and have just around a month to rally supporters on election day.
Shadow foreign secretary, Emily Thornberry, was also eliminated from leadership contests in mid-February after gaining less than the required 33 pledges to proceed in elections.
