The State of It

For now, the Prime Minister Keir Starmer vows to stay as the Reform leader Nigel Farage calls this a “truly historic shift in British politics” Steven and Lara caught up at the Times office in Westminster just after 4pm to unpack the results from England’s local council and mayoral elections, alongside national contests in Scotland and Wales, as Reform and the Greens surge and Labour suffer huge  losses.Steven Swinford, political editor, The TimesLara Spirit, deputy political editor, The Sunday TimesProducers: Euan Dawtrey, Harry KitsonPicture credit: Getty Images

Thursday's local elections are set to blow apart Britain’s political duopoly, and the fallout for Labour could be existential. Pressure is mounting on the Prime Minister as rivals circle. Angela Rayner, Wes Streeting and Andy Burnham are all positioning. But who moves first?Meanwhile, it's not all smooth sailing for the insurgents. Questions over Reform's Nigel Farage’s £5 million gift from Thai-based crypto tycoon Christopher Harborne aren’t going away.And on the left flank, Green Party leader Zack Polanski has seen his approval ratings dip after questioning police tactics during the Golders Green attack.Steven Swinford, political editor, The TimesLara Spirit, deputy political editor, The Sunday TimesProducers: Euan Dawtrey, Harry KitsonPicture credit: Getty Images

Morgan McSweeney has told MPs that the revelations about Peter Mandelson's relationship with Jeffrey Epstein were like a knife through his soul. The more we learn about the appointment process, the madder it sounds. And the odd thing is that crucial decisions were not written down: there are no receipts.There's a mood building in the Labour Party that Keir Starmer will need to go big or go home: come up with a bold agenda, make the case for it and then deliver it. Has he got it in him? And how far to the left will he take the government?Steven Swinford, political editor, The TimesPatrick Maguire, chief political commentator, The TimesLara Spirit, deputy political editor, The Sunday TimesProducers: Euan Dawtrey, Harry KitsonExecutive producer: Molly GuinnessPicture credit: Getty Images

Sir Olly Robbins dropped bombshell after bombshell when he spoke to MPs. Robbins, who was sacked as the Foreign Office’s chief civil servant, has accused Downing Street of placing the department under constant pressure to get Lord Mandelson through vetting. He also said the prime minister had tried to find an ambassadorial job for Matthew Doyle, another Labour peer who's been in trouble for a friendship with a paedophile. Where does it all leave Sir Keir Starmer? Plus, we reveal when the next tranche of Mandelson files will be published.Steven Swinford, political editor, The TimesGabriel Pogrund, Whitehall editor, The Sunday TimesLara Spirit, deputy political editor, The Sunday TimesProducers: Euan Dawtrey, Harry KitsonExecutive producer: Molly GuinnessPicture credit: Parliament TVAudio credit: Parliament TV

Everything you need to know about the latest instalment of the Mandelson scandal. What Labour MPs are saying about Keir Starmer; our verdict on whether he can survive it, and why Patrick thinks the prime minister is doing "the political equivalent of smoking outside a hospital".Steven Swinford, political editor, The TimesPatrick Maguire, chief political commentator, The TimesLara Spirit, deputy political editor, The Sunday TimesProducer: Harry KitsonExecutive producer: Molly GuinnessPicture credit: Getty ImagesAudio: Reuters, x.com/KemiBadenoch, x.com/Nigel_Farage

Kidney machines replaced with rockets and guns: Keir Starmer says security is his priority but where will the money for defence come from and when will he tell us?On the road with Nigel Farage.If the polls are right, which major cabinet minister is likely to lose their seat? Spoiler: most of them.And as Labour moves closer to the EU, can they convince voters that it's a good idea?Steven Swinford, political editor, The TimesPatrick Maguire, chief political commentator, The TimesLara Spirit, deputy political editor, The Sunday TimesProducers: Euan Dawtrey, Harry KitsonExecutive producer: Molly GuinnessPicture credit: Getty Images

As Reform rolls its tanks onto Labour’s lawn across the old Red Wall and the Greens set their sights on London, Starmer braces for a bruising set of local elections.Has David Lammy given up on London? And Steve reveals Reform's antagonistic campaigning slogan...Meanwhile, with the economic toll from the Iranian conflict unfolding, we explain how it might take Gabriel a little longer to find his daily packet of Quavers.Steven Swinford, political editor, The TimesGabriel Pogrund, Whitehall editor, The Sunday TimesLara Spirit, deputy political editor, The Sunday TimesProducers: Euan Dawtrey, Harry KitsonExecutive producer: Molly GuinnessPicture credit: Getty Images

Inside the negotiations between the government and the doctors' union, the BMA. Why is Keir Starmer putting himself front and centre of this rather than leaving it to his health secretary, Wes Streeting?Even though the Green Party's spring conference this weekend descended into chaotic rows, their leader Zack Polanski has a plan to win over the unions, and it might just work. We have some exclusive words from him. Scoop: what exactly is going wrong with the small boats talks between Britain and France?Gabriel Pogrund, Whitehall editor, The Sunday TimesLara Spirit, deputy political editor, The Sunday TimesProducers: Euan Dawtrey, Harry KitsonExecutive producer: Molly GuinnessPicture credit: Getty ImagesEmail us: thestateofit@thetimes.co.uk