The local government campaigning experts the LibDems have lost every councillor in Manchester, control of Sheffield, and the decapitation of their council leaders across the north. They are 340 councillors down, with less than half of counts having declared. Labour are crowing abut gains in places they were already strong. Cleggy got a spanking and the first call for his resignation has come, yet the Tory vote seems to be holding.

North of the border the Sun will be claiming they won it, as Alex Salmond has come from behind in the polls to humiliate Miliband in his heartlands. With the SNP on course for a majority win, Scotland are an inch closer to having to work out how to fund their own bloated welfare state. If Miliband can’t win here, it’s bad news for him. Scottish Labour are in turmoil this morning and apparently raging at the simple assumption that the disillusioned LibDems would come flocking to Red Ed. Iain Gray, the Scottish leader, came within a hairs breadth of a scalping.

The AV result out at 9pm tonight is rumoured to be hammering for Yes.