Local Elections In England Provide Bad News For The Governing Coalition

The center right and center left parties suffered large loses in local elections.  That is not good news for the coalition government which governs at the national level.  The gains in the local elections by parties on the right, and the left, reflect the political polarization that has been underway in the UK. The poor performance of the economy has made the public more receptive to political ideologies which provide very different solutions for the economic and social problems in the UK.  The right wing party has much in common with the rise of nationalist parties in Europe.  It is opposed to membership in the EU and it has a strong anti-immigration bias.  The Liberal Democratic Party has lost support since it joined with the Conservative Party to form the coalition government.