Chris Mead

Home Secretary Jacqui Smith faces the possibility of becoming the most high-profile General Election loser after Tories gained two council seats in her Redditch, Worcestershire, powerbase.

Their candidate Juliet Brunner won in the county's Arrow Valley East division which has more than a quarter of the constituency's electorate.

The swing was 14.2% since the last shire contest which took place on the same day as the 2005 General Election.

A shift of just 3.4% since then would be enough to unseat Ms Smith. A small boundary change is expected to make her even more vulnerable.

There was slightly better news for her party in a Redditch Borough by-election at Batchley.

Tory Brenda Quinney gained but there was a 4% swing back to Labour from Conservatives' high water result this May when they had won another of the ward's seats.

However, Ms Smith would still face defeat even on the basis of this result.

Elsewhere, Tories missed another gain by just 22 votes as Liberal Democrats held on at Uckfield New Town, Wealden District, East Sussex.

Labour easily defended a Townfield seat at West London's Hillingdon Borough where the party candidate's nomination papers were signed by Hayes and Harlington MP John McDonnell.