Nigel Farage today declared that Ukip is ‘re-writing political history’ after making in-roads into Labour, Tory and Lib Dem heartlands.

With the bulk of local election results declared, Ukip has won more than 150 seats, leading Mr Farage to boast: 'The Ukip fox is in the Westminster hen house.'

David Cameron rejected calls from Tory MPs to strike an electoral pact with Ukip, as Nick Clegg refused to resign after seeing the Lib Dems ousted from flagship councils.

But Ed Miliband came under the greatest pressure, with Labour MPs lining up to warn his ‘unprofessional’ and ‘weird’ campaign had failed to connect with voters with just a year until he launches a bid for Number 10.

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Ukip leader Nigel Farage clutches a bottle of wine as he is mobbed by supporters and the media as he met new councillors in South Ockendon

Cheers! After a gruelling election campaign, Mr Farage savers a pint in a pub in Benfleet

Mr Farage appeared to be in high spirits with supporters during a visit to Basildon

Ukip members were jubilant at the results, as the other parties licked their wounds and wondered what went wrong

Many Labour MPswere unimpressed with the party's showing in the council elections today. But Ed Miliband was able to show that he had won the popular vote and won more council seats than any other party

Labour may have scooped more seats than any other party today, but they only gained six councils with the bulk of the seats counted

After 148 councils had declared results, Ukip had gained 155 seats, with the Tories losing 200 and Labour gaining 291.

Labour has gained control of six councils, with Conservatives losing 11 and the Lib Dems two.

More than 4,000 council seats at 161 English local authorities were up for grabs, including the London boroughs and those in Northern Ireland.

Votes were also cast throughout the UK for the European Parliament contest to return 73 MEPs - but those results will not be announced until Sunday night.

While Ukip failed to win any councils themselves, major gains in town halls across the country robbed other parties overall controls.

Ukip hope to use their gains as a springboard to securing seats in the Commons at the next general election.

The Tories took comfort from results showing they had clung on in Swindon, Trafford and Peterborough - all seats held by Tony Blair before the 1996 New Labour landslide.

Mr Miliband came under fire from his own side, with Ed Balls claiming Labour's campaign had been 'not good enough'. Labour made its biggest gains in London.

Analysis of the results suggest that if the vote was repeated at a general election, Labour would get 31 per cent, just ahead of the Tories on 29 per cent.

Ukip would be on 17 per cent, down from 22 per cent based on local elections last year.The Lib Dems were on just 13 per cent, suggesting Mr Clegg's party could

Analysis by the BBC of the votes cast in the local elections suggests that if repeated at a general election, Labour would be just two points ahead of the Tories, with Ukip on only 17 per cent

While Ukip were the big winners in terms of seats gained, their projected vote share was actually down on last year

Tory leader David Cameron ruled out an election pact with Ukip, insisting his party had to do more to persuade voters they were delivering for Britain

Lib Dem leader Nick Clegg refused to resign after losing flagship councils, while Labour leader Ed Miliband faced fresh criticism of his leadership style

HOW THE UKIP FACTOR ROBBED RIVALS OF COUNCIL CONTROL Ukip might not have won any councils themselves, but a surge in support robbed the other parties of overall control of town halls across the country. Ukip gains cost the Tories control in Maidstone, Basildon, Peterborough, Castle Point and Southend-on-Sea. Similarly, Labour lost control of Thurrock and Great Yarmouth and Lib Dems were ousted from Portsmouth after Ukip won seats. BIGGEST UKIP WINS: Basildon 11 seats Great Yarmouth 10 seats Rotherham 10 seats Portsmouth 6 seats Thurrock 5 seats Southend 5 seats Castlepoint 5 seats Maidstone 4 seats Advertisement

Ukip gains cost the Tories control of Basildon, Castle Point and Southend while a surge in Essex saw Mr Farage's party erode the Labour grip in Thurrock - a key Westminster target for Ed Miliband's party.

In the north, Ukip showed it could pose a threat to Labour in its strongholds, taking 10 of the 21 council seats up for election in Rotherham, including nine gains, and polling an average of 47 per cent where its candidates stood.

The Lib Dems lost control of Portsmouth after Ukip won six seats, including defeating under-fire Lib Dem MP Mike Hancock who was standing for re-election to the council.

In another blow to Mr Clegg, the Tories kicked the Lib Dems out of Kingston-upon-Thames.

Speaking to reporters outside his home this morning, Mr Farage said: 'There are areas of the country where now we have got an imprint in local government. Under the first-past-the-post system we are serious players.'

Mr Farage suggested that the idea that Ukip had only damaged the Tory vote had been blown away by the results.

'There were two conversations going on last night. One was in Westminster amongst commentariat and MPs... The other conversation was going on in Swindon where the Labour leader said: "We've been hurt by Ukip",' he told the BBC.

'Another conversation was going in Rotherham where Ukip won 10 seats and Labour won 11 seats.

'In the West Midlands Labour were saying 'Ukip are splitting our vote and letting the Tories in'. And I think this idea that the UKIP vote just hurts the Tories I think is going to be blown away by these results.'

All the main parties have been left reeling about how to respond to the Ukip threat, with just a year to go until the general election.

Polling experts said Labour in particular had failed to make the necessary gains to prove it was on the march to power in the general election in 12 months’ time.

This morning Professor John Curtice said the public did not seem to see Labour as an alternative Government.

‘If you compare Labour's performance vote-for-vote with 2010, the advance is just 3 percentage points - 3 per cent on what was the day in which Labour recorded its second worst result,’ he said.

Mr Farage headed to the Hoy and Helmet pub in Benfleet at 12.30pm to celebrate his party's election successes

Mr Farage claimed that his party was re-writing political history by taking on all the three main parties

LABOUR KICK TORIES OUT OF HAMMERSMITH AND FULHAM Labour hailed a 'spectacular' victory in Hammersmith and Fulham, taking control of the flagship Tory council. Eleven Conservative seats in the Tory stronghold went to Labour - leaving the council with 26 Labour seats and 20 Conservative. The borough, sometimes described as David Cameron's favourite, has been under Conservative control since 2002. Elsewhere in London, Ed Miliband's party also won overall control of Merton, Redbridge and Croydon. The party also made gains in Hastings, Carlisle, Cannock Chase, Dudley and Ipswich. Labour also took Cambridge from no overall control, taking seats off the Liberal Democrats. Advertisement

Mr Miliband said voters turned to Ukip out of a 'deep sense of discontent' with the way the country is being run.

He insisted he can 'persuade' Ukip backers to support him in the battle for Number 10 in May next year.

He told Sky News: 'I think in some parts of the country we've had discontent building up for decades about the way the country has been run and about the way our economy works and people feeling that the country just doesn't work for them.

'And so what you are seeing in some parts of the country is people turning to Ukip as an expression of that discontent and that desire for change.'

However, early indications suggested Ukip appeared to be struggling to make progress in London, where the big battles were between Labour and the Tories.

In a boost for Mr Miliband, Labour ousted the Tories from Hammersmith and Fulham, a flagship authority in the capital.

Labour also gained the key target London borough of Croydon from the Conservatives. Labour gained seven seats, while the Tories lost seven seats.

The Conservatives lost control of West Lancashire after Labour gained a seat there.

Labour gained overall control of Harrow Council after winning nine seats.

The Conservatives also saw the grip on Peterborough eroded, losing three seats to Ukip and one to Labour, and narrlowly clung on in Tamworth after Ukip took one seat.

The Tories also lost Brentwood, in the backyard of Communities Secretary Eric Pickles. They lost two seats to the Lib Dems and one to Labour, which means that no party has a majority.

The Conservatives also lost control in Southend-on-Sea after a Ukip surge saw them gain five seats.

Ukip took five seats in Castle Point, denying the Tories of another overall majority.

Ukip supporters celebrate big national gains as they wait for leader Nigel Farage to arrive in South Ockenden

Frances Fox celebrates becoming Ukip's first councillor elected in Peterborough

Ukip showed signs of making major gains elsewhere in Essex, traditionally a key Labour-Tory battleground which can decide general elections.

Margaret Thatcher identified the 'Essex man' when prime minister as someone who previously would have been expected to vote Labour but backed her leadership thanks to polices targeted to appeal to them.

In Basildon, Ukip gained 11 seats - becoming the second largest party and costing the Tories control of the council.

Mr Farage's party gained seven seats from the Conservatives, two from Labour and one each from the Lib Dems and an independent.

In Thurrock - a key swing seat in the Commons - Ukip gained five seats, meaning that Labour lost control of the council.

5TH GENERATION BENN, NO BREAKTHROUGH FOR BEZ AND 'TALKING DIRTY' Ukip's Neil Hamilton claimed 'women like people talking dirty to them', Labour's Emily Benn became the fifth generation of her family to be elected to public office, and Happy Mondays' Bez came within three votes of seeing his Reality Party win a seat in Manchester Harry Potter, Francis Drake and a new party set up by Happy Monday's star Bez all fought today's council elections. In Greenwich, south east London, Mr Potter polled just 158 votes for the Lib Dems - clearly lacked magic at the ballot box - trailing behind Labour, Ukip, Tory, the Greens and even the BNP. Ukip's Mr Drake however managed to bag the party's first-ever seat on Weymouth and Portland Borough Council - where he toppled the current Lib Dem mayor Ray Banham. Fellow Ukipper Neil Hamilton meanwhile managed just 389 votes in Wandsworth, south London. The disgraced former Tory MP admitted on TV that he 'probably would have done worse' if he had canvassed for votes. But he added: 'I did remember to vote for myself.' Earlier in the day, Mr Hamilton - Ukip's deputy chairman - had joked that a council candidate criticised for offensive comments was elected because 'some women like people talking dirty to them'. Challenged on the remark, he added: 'That's a joke of course.' In Salford, greater Manchester, the a new movement called 'The Reality Party' battled Labour and the Tories on a promise to end 'evil' and cure Cancer. The party was established by Celebrity Big Brother winner Bez and finished in third in the Irlam ward - just 23 votes behind the Tories. Nick Griffin's British National Party managed to hold on to one of its two seats up for grabs yesterday. For Labour, Emily Benn - the granddaughter of the late Tony Benn - was elected as a councillor in Croydon, south London. She becomes the fifth generation of the Benn family to reach elected office. Former newspaper editor Kelvin MacKenzie lost by 41 votes to the Tories in his bid to become a councillor in the St George's Hill ward in Weybridge, Surrey. Advertisement

Miliband under fire as Balls warns Labour 'not good enough'

Labour leader Ed Miliband was forced to defend the way he ran his campaign after failing to make breakthroughs in several key areas

HOW THE RESULTS PANNED OUT WINS: Hammersmith & Fulham and Croydon are big wins, suggesting Labour has strength in London. Won Cambridge after taking seats from Lib Dems. Retained control of Harlow Council, despite losing three seats to UKIP. Took control of Harrow and deprived the Tories of control of West Lancashire LOSSES: Failing to win Swindon is a setback, while losing control of Thurrock suggests the party may struggle to win key swing seats at the next election. In the party's heartland of Rotherham, UKIP took 10 of the 21 seats being contested. In Great Yarmouth, Labour lost control as Ukip took 10 seats. Advertisement

Senior Labour MPs rounded on Ed Miliband today - as election experts warned the party was no longer on track to win the next general election.

While the party made significant progress in London it struggled elsewhere as anti-government protest votes went to Ukip. One of the country's top polling experts Professor John Curtice said Labour had lost up to nine per cent support since the last local elections two years ago.

Shadow chancellor Ed Balls said the party's performance was 'not good enough yet'. He added: 'We have got more to do if we are really going to win the argument.'

Mr Balls said: 'It's not good enough yet for Labour. We have got more to do if we are really going to win the argument.'

The Labour heavyweight said: 'We’re doing better than people were expecting across southern seats but now the challenge is for Labour in the north - particularly where we’re clearly the majority party or tight Tory/Labour areas. We have to understand that challenge.'

He added that 'everyone is taken aback on gains across the country'.

Shadow Chancellor Ed Balls, on the campaign trail in the Vale of Glamorgan this week, admitted Labour's performance in the council elections had not been good enough

Felow Labour MP John Mann hit out at the Labour leadership for failing to take on UKIP.

He said: 'The Labour party and the people deciding strategy at the top, without question, and they told me this, had a strategy of ignoring UKIP instead of taking them on. And that was a disastrous strategy.

'What the party should have done in this election is take on UKIP.

'But the Labour party needs to have a broader appeal. People like me and the views that I represent.. our viewpoint is not sufficiently being heard within the Labour party.

'The coalition of the Labour party is not broad enough and we need to be part of it and if we're not Labour won't win at the next general election.'

He blasted 'pointy-heads' at the top of the party for ignoring working class concerns.

Mr Mann accused Mr Miliband of not 'broadening the appeal' of the party.

Outspoken Labour MP Simon Danczuk admitted voters were being turned off by Mr Miliband. He said: 'I’m not going to pretend that Ed Miliband as an issue doesn’t come up on the doorstep, of course it does.'

Graham Stringer agreed that the public were not buying into the prospect of Mr Miliband being Prime Minister.

Mr Stringer added: 'These wasn’t the kind of enthusiasm on the doorstep that I have felt when we have been going to win elections.

'And when you talk more deeply to people, they don’t really find an empathy or sympathy with Ed. He’s not getting over his own personality over to them in a way they feel warm towards.'

Mr Stringer was asked if he was worried by the results. He said: 'Yes.'

MILIBAND'S GAFFES: GROCERIES, NAMES AND A BACON SANDWICH Mr Miliband was mocked over pictures of himself eating a bacon sandwich Ed Miliband's election fight has been plagued by gaffes and embarrassing photo opportunities that left him looking awkward and out of touch with voters. His campaign reached an humiliating low on Tuesday when he failed to recognise the name of a local Labour leader hours after appearing to under-estimate his family’s grocery. The Labour leader ran into trouble when he was reduced to asking a presenter on BBC Radio Wiltshire to ‘enlighten’ him after he was asked for his views on the leader of the Labour group in Swindon, whose name he did not recognise. Earlier that morning on ITV’s Good Morning Britain he said that his family spends £70 to £80 a week on groceries, before being told that the average weekly bill for a family of four was more than £100. The next morning his first photo opportunity of the day at 6:30am ended in disaster when he was pictured struggling to eat a bacon sandwich. The cafe owner later admitted that he was backing the Tories because they are more pro-business. Advertisement

The Labour MP added: 'Ed Miliband has just said the general election campaign starts here. Well, I am afraid, really, the general election campaign started at the start of this campaign, and we have not done as well as we should have done.'

He attacked the Labour leadership's refusal to grant the public a referendum on Europe and slammed Mr Miliband for his blundering TV performace this week in which he failed to know how much he spent on his shopping.

'The centrepiece of our campaign has been the cost of living, and yet Ed didn’t know his own cost of living when he went into it, he didn’t know how much he was spending on shopping.

'Really, people around him should have said when David Cameron had been attacked as a posh boy not knowing the price of milk that we should not fall into that trap. We should know the price of milk and bread. That sort of thing is unforgivably unprofessional.'

Professor John Curtice said the public did not seem to see Labour as a alternative Government.

He said: 'When it comes to local elections, we have quite high expectations of what oppositions should achieve.

'We basically say, if a party looks as though it is potentially regarded as an alternative government, it should be doing very well in local elections, even better than you would expect to do in a general election in 12 months' time.

'The truth is, by that test at least, Labour have not done well enough.

'Most of the seats that were being up for grabs yesterday were last fought over on the same day as the 2010 general election.

'And if you compare Labour's performance vote-for-vote with 2010, the advance is just 3 percentage points - 3 per cent on what was the day in which Labour recorded its second worst result.

'And if you actually compare these results with the position two years ago, which we can also compare most of these places with, Labour's vote is clearly well down, something like nine points.

'So the truth is, modest progress, Labour not even doing as well as they were able to do earlier in this parliament, and thereby again reinforcing the doubts that have always been there that at the end of the day it is not entirely clear that the British electorate regard Labour as a clear alternative.'

Former Labour Cabinet minister Peter Hain yesterday warned the party was losing working class votes – and warned Mr Miliband to adopt a more ‘robust’ approach to Ukip.

‘The problem is that there is a seriously alienated – mostly white working class, often male – vote out there that was traditionally Labour’s,’ he said.

One senior Labour figure told The Times: ‘The truth is that Miliband looks weird, sounds weird, is weird.’

'We don't do deals': Cameron rejects idea of a pact with Ukip

David Cameron, touring a warehouse today, insisted he understood the message from voters who chose to back Ukip

HOW THE RESULTS PANNED OUT WINS: Increasing majority in Swindon, a major Labour target. Clung on in Tamworth after losing just one seat to Ukip. Won Kingston upon Thames from the Lib Dems. Held all seats in Kirlklees, despite high profile visits from Ed Miliband and Ed Balls. LOSSES: Labour taking Hammersmith and Fulham is a big blow. Maidstone and Peterborough slipped into no overall control after Ukip gains. Brentwood, in Eric Pickles' backyard, now no overall control, alongside other south Essex councils Basildon, Castle Point and Southend. Advertisement

David Cameron ruled out doing a deal with Ukip as he came under fresh pressure from Tory MPs to stem losses at the general election.

Tory MPs fear that without an electoral pact with Nigel Farage - which would see Ukip agree not to stand against Eurosceptic Conservatives - Labour could take power next year.

But the Prime Minister insisted: 'We're the Conservative party, we don't do pacts or deals, we're fighting all out.'

Labour ousted the Tories from Hammersmith and Fulham, a flagship authority in the capital, and also gained the key target London borough of Croydon from the Conservatives.

Downing Street took comfort from seeing off the Labour threat in Swindon and Thurrock, but Ukip gains robbed them of overall control in Maidstone, Peterborough, Basildon, Castle Point and Southend.

However Ukip gains cost the Tories control in Maidstone, Basildon, Peterborough, Castle Point and Southend-on-Sea.

Conservative MP Douglas Carswell said: ‘We need a pact with Ukip. If David Cameron is as serious about an in/out vote in 2017 as he says he is, and if Nigel Farage is as serious about Brexit as he claims, the two of them need to do a deal,’ he said.

Jacob Rees-Mogg told the BBC: 'In a first-past-the-post system, if they don't get those votes into one pot, then both those sides end up losing.'

But speaking in his Oxfordshire constituency, Mr Cameron insisted he would not do a deal.

'We're the Conservative party, we don't do pacts or deals, we're fighting all out for an all out win at the next election,' he said.

But he conceded that the public were 'frustrated' with the political establishment's failure to address their concerns.

'People want us to deliver,' he said. 'The economy is growing, we are creating jobs, but we have got to work harder and we have got to really deliver on issues that are frustrating people and frustrating me, like welfare reform and immigration and making sure people really benefit from this recovery.

'We will be working flat out to demonstrate that we do have the answers to help hard working people.'

Tory Education Secretary Michael Gove said the loss of votes to Ukip was a 'clear instruction from people on us to deliver'

Tory backbencher John Baron - MP for Basildon and Billericay - said Mr Cameron was still making mistakes and ceding ground to Ukip.

'Whilst accepting that Ukip is in part a protest vote, the political establishment has been too complacent over the EU. It must now heed the message from these elections,' he said.

'No 10 must learn from past mistakes. First it tried to ignore, and then insult, Ukip. It then took our backbench campaigns to get a referendum, and then support for legislation.

'But even now mistakes are being made. We have immigration targets, yet cannot control the major EU component.

'We also need to make clearer that there will be no deal with Ukip.'

Tory party chairman Grant Shapps insisted: 'We’re not going to have a pact or joint candidates, or whatever.

'It can’t happen on a technical basis because we do not allow joint candidates to stand... It’s not going to happen because we’re the Conservative party; we are the best chance to offer an in/out referendum, the only chance.'

'No 10 must learn from past mistakes. We have immigration targets, yet cannot control the major EU component'

Education Secretary Michael Gove told ITV's Good Morning Britain: 'I don’t think we should have a pact.

'I think we should seek to get every individual who is concerned about the best future for this country to support David Cameron as the next Prime Minister and the best way to do that is to vote Conservative.

'We appreciate and understand why people have voted Ukip, and in government we will make sure that we deliver on the priorities that people have clearly set out.

'There’s a clear instruction from people on us to deliver. I understand why some people have been angry in the past about the failure of government, but now that we’re in a position to deliver, we should.'

Defeat by Ukip had been expected to renew pressure on Mr Cameron to toughen up on Europe and immigration. But a planned Tory backlash has been put on hold while the party focuses on fighting next month’s Newark by-election, vacated by shamed Tory MP Patrick Mercer.

A Tory MP said: ‘People are keeping their powder dry until we see the result in Newark. To lose would be a disaster – there would be massive ructions.’

Clegg refuses to resign as Lib Dems lose Portsmouth and Kingston

Lib Dem leader Nick Clegg left his home this morning to begin assessing the damaging to his local party base

Nick Clegg today refused to resign as Lib Dem leader after losing control of some of his party's flagship councils.

The Lib Dems were ousted from Portsmouth after a surge of support for Ukip while the Tories took control of Kingston-upon-Thames - the local authority of Energy Secretary Ed Davey.

A rare glimmer of good news came in Eastleigh, where the Lib Dems have tightened their grip on the local authority after successfully defending the parliamentary seat in a by-election last year.

Mr Clegg conceded that his party had suffered at the hands of a Ukip surge, blaming a 'very strong anti-politics feeling among the public.

But he added: 'Actually I think in the areas where we have MPs where we have good organisation on the ground... we are actually doing well.'

The Lib Dems are are on course to lose around 300 seats.

Earlier Lib Dem minister Lynne Featherstone said her party had lost its ‘humanity’ in office.

‘Ukip have managed to sound like human beings – that’s Nigel Farage’s big win,’ she told the BBC. ‘All of us have become so guarded, we are so on-message that we seem to have lost some of our humanity.

‘The Lib Dems are the whipping boys in the coalition. In the last general election debates Nick came across as the human being… Partly being in government, we have become more ministerial, we have become more political. We have lost some of the humanity Nick had four years ago.’

With rumours swirling of a leadership plot, Mr Clegg has urged his party not to ‘lose its nerve’ just as the Government’s key decisions are being ‘vindicated’.

Mr Clegg told reporters it was 'never easy' seeing 'dedicated, hard-working' councillors kicked out.

But he said he would 'absolutely not' resign, and insisted the Lib Dems were still succeeding where they focused on their achievements in coalition.

'Based on the results which have come in so far, it has obviously been a mixed result, a mixed night for my party, for the Liberal Democrats and the other mainstream parties,' Mr Clegg said.

'We will see what the further results today, what story they tell. But so far what I have seen is that where we can work really hard to tell our side of the story, we can win.'

He added: 'I certainly accept that there is a very strong anti-politics mood around, not only in our country but in many other parts of Europe as well. I think you will see that in European elections in the days to come...

'There is a very strong mood of restlessness and dissatisfaction with mainstream politics and that is reflected in the results for all mainstream parties, including the Lib Dems.'

Mr Clegg is under fresh pressure, with the Lib Dems braced to lose many of their MEPs when the European election results emerge on Sunday night

HOW THE RESULTS PANNED OUT WINS: Did well in Eastleigh - stopping Ukip from taking any seats on council. LOSSES: Portsmouth slipped into no overall control, as Ukip took four seats. Tories took overall control of Kingston-upon-Thames. Labour took Cambridge. Advertisement

Deputy Leader of the Liberal Democrats Sir Malcolm Bruce played down his party's losses and stressed it intended to be a 'major force' in British politics for the foreseeable future.

He told BBC Breakfast: 'It is obviously disappointing to lose councillors, particularly those who have worked hard in their community and may have been replaced by those who haven't got a track record.

'But actually we are pleased that where we have targeted our resources, particularly in held seats or key seats, we have actually had very good results.

'That's really very important for us. Getting an even share across the country doesn't deliver seats, getting them in the seats that matter is what matters to us.'

Senior party figures dismiss ideas that Mr Clegg could be replaced by Danny Alexander or Vince Cable, but are preparing for a bumpy few weeks if the results are bad. In several European election polls, the party has been languishing in fifth place behind the Greens.

A poll suggests that only 46 per cent of Lib Dem voters would want Mr Clegg to stay in his job if the party ends up in that position.

David Cameron and senior Tories, however, are said to be planning a ‘Save Clegg’ operation that will see the Lib Dems given ‘wins’ in the forthcoming Queen’s Speech.

Lib Dem sources insisted their vote was holding up well in their Parliamentary seats, and that both the Tories and Labour were falling short of the sort of results they need to demonstrate if they want to win a majority next year.

Ukip flops in London blaming the 'educated, cultured and young'

Ukip failed to do as well in London as it did in the rest of the country. The party blamed the capital's 'educated, cultured and young' for the snub

Ukip today claimed it had failed to breakthrough in London despite its success in the rest of the country - because voters in the capital are more 'media savvy and educated' than elsewhere.

Nigel Farage's party picked up more than 100 seats from Labour, the Tories and the Lib Dems in council elections nationally and is expected to top the European vote on Sunday.

But Mr Farage's campaign flopped in the capital, where Labour picked up key swing councils from the Tories.

Labour gained Hammersmith and Fulham, Croydon, Merton and Redbridge councils, while the Tories picked up Kingston upon Thames from the Lib Dems and held on to Wandsworth, Bexley and Richmond.

Ukip spokeswoman Suzanne Evans was asked to explain the party's poor performance in London. Speaking on Radio 4 Ms Evans admitted the party had difficulty appealing to the 'educated, cultured and young'.

She said: 'I think it's simple and I think most people understand. London is its own person, its own body, its own individual character.

'It's very different from the rest of the country. Look at the social demographic - you have the sort of metropolitan elite who cannot really understand the heartache and the pain people around the country are feeling.

'We haven't really got our message across in London.'

Boris Johnson, speaking during a campaign rally this week, was successful in heading off a Ukip surge - but saw Tory voters siphoned off by Labour

She said London had a more 'media savvy, well educated population'. She added: 'They are more likely to have read some of the negative press there has been about us. And I think they are more likely yo have believed it.

'People outside London have been far more cynical about the media campaign and the campaign the other parties have waged against us.'

The contrast between London and the rest of the UK is set to pile pressure on the party's election co-ordinator Douglas Alexander.

In London, Mr Miliband chose his close ally Sadiq Khan, the shadow justice secretary, to take charge of campaigning up to 2016.

Mr Khan’s campaign focussed on bread and butter help for squeezed families, including higher pay, rent curbs, more housing and the cost of fares.

Labour looks set to come first in both the contest for London’s eight European Parliament seats and in London-wide borough elections.

Ukip is expecting to top the European elections when the results are announced on Sunday. It was polling 27 per cent as voters went to the polls - followed by Labour on 26 and the Conservatives on 22 with the Lib-Dems one point behind the Greens on nine.

But in London, Ukip was trailing a distant third on just 20 per cent - behind Labour on 27 per cent and the Conservatives 23.