Labour looks to local polls as dress rehearsal for general election

Mayoral races may be important indicator of Starmer's political momentum as party seeks to turn 20-point national lead into results

If a telltale sign of a politician's confidence is how willingly they expose themselves to direct media scrutiny, then the likely narrative of May's local elections was on full view on Thursday in Dudley.

While Rishi Sunak had followed his Conservative launch speech last Friday with the strictly controlled and limited format of a brief TV clip, Keir Starmer answered journalists' questions for about 40 minutes, covering everything from council spending to Angela Rayner's tax affairs.