1. National  Labour wins South Shields vote   View all 24
updates ›  Lib Dems couldn't 'compete seriously' in South
Shields  Liberal Democrat leader Nick Clegg has responded to
election results after UKIP gained at least 88 county
councillors, and the Liberal Democrats secured just 352 votes at
South Shields.  Mr Clegg defended the result saying that the
party was "on a journey" from being a "protest party" to a
"government party".  More top news