FAR-RIGHT extremists failed to secure any base in Darlington last night.

Despite its claims that it had strong support in the town, the British National Party (BNP) candidates were soundly beaten in each of the seven wards they contested.

Labour retained its overall control of the borough council, winning 35 seats to the Tories' 16 and the Liberal Democrats' two.

It was a heavy defeat for the BNP, which was adamant that its stance on asylum seekers had struck a chord with the people of Darlington.

Labour Group leader Councillor John Williams said his party had performed well, despite predictions of anti-war feeling affecting the vote.

He said: "To virtually maintain our majority is an outstanding result. The BNP, quite frankly, are an irrelevance.

"Any support they have got is a pure protest vote and not an endorsement of their vile policies."

He added: "We are focused on the people's priorities and have a clear vision for the future of Darlington.

"I am absolutely delighted with the result here, for everybody in the Labour Party and all the Labour councillors, who have worked so hard to achieve this.

"We are determined to improve the services we deliver in Darlington."

Conservative Group leader Councillor Tony Richmond said: "We are the only party that did gain. I am pleased about being re-elected in College ward.

"One of the consequences of a much increased turnout is that it is immediately difficult to establish what the swing is to any of the parties.

"The votes that have been cast will have to be analysed to see what the swing, if any, is. It would appear that where we have won we seem to have increased our majority in percentage terms."

Election officials had faced a last-minute rush from residents who had not used their postal vote earlier.

More than 40,000 residents cast their votes in a record-breaking election.

The figure meant that 52 per cent of people had their say, surpassing the election of May 1999, which recorded a turnout of 33 per cent.

The night appeared to be a disappointment for the Tories who were hoping to capitalise on what they perceived to be weaknesses in current policies from the use of controversial litter wardens to rising council tax.

The creation of a new Faverdale ward led to victory for Conservative John Armstrong over Labour's John Flook.

Darlington Borough Council

Bank Top

(2 seats)

Simon Cawte (C)184

Douglas Hardy (I)149

Stanley Johnson (C)225

Harry Marrs (BNP)135

*Sheila Robson (L)652

*John Williams (L)758

Central

(2 seats)

*Raymond Flowers (L)686

*Isobel Hartley (L)706

James Moore (C)278

David Reed (C)278

College

(2 seats)

Ian Barnes (LD)363

Sheila Dunstone (LD)345

Valerie Pringle (l)368

*Tony Richmond (C)979

Carl Robinson (L)324

*Philip Stamford-Bewlay (C)885

Cockerton East

(3 seats)

*Paul Baldwin (L)841

*Donald Bristow (L)865

William Lippett (C)549

Bryan Stapley (C)641

Elizabeth Sugden (C)534

*Bryan Thistlethwaite (L)1030

Cockerton West

(2 seats)

Andrew Bowers (C)372

Robert Bowman (BNP)157

*Clifford Hutchinson (L)775

*Eric Wilson (L)769

Eastbourne

(3 seats)

*William Dixon (L)831

Colin Fairman (I)343

*Roderick Francis (L)946

Janet Mazurk (C)468

Doreen Tucker (C)551

*Lee Vasey (L)758

faverdale

(1 seat)

*John Armstrong (C)337

John Flook (L)259

Harrowgate Hill

(3 seats)

Trevor Agnew (BNP)261

Francis Elliott (C)494

Stephen Fenwick (LD)276

Anne Harrison (C)647

*Elizabeth Hart (L)1016

John Hoodless (I)221

Tina Jones (LD)439

Angela McPherson (LD)337

Marjorie Roberts (C)513

*John Vasey (L)907

*Emma Vasey-Smith (L)833

Haughton East

(2 seats)

Hilda Allinson (C)408

*Christopher McEwan (L)892

*Geoffrey Walker (L)829

Haughton North

(2 seats)

*Veronica Copeland (L)773

*Thomas Nutt (L)809

Felicity Power (C)563

Roger Power (C)522

Haughton West

(3 seats)

Carol Lambird (I)476

*David Lyonette (L)1145

Nigel Nevison (BNP)185

*Andrew Scott (L)996

Leslie Smith (C)452

*Nicholas Wallis (L)1040

Terence Wilkinson (C)538

Heighington

and Coniscliffe

(2 seats)

Elaine Hope (L)208

*Gerald Lee (C)1151

*Eric Roberts (C)943

Sandra Thorne-Wallis (L)173

Hummersknott

(2 seats)

*Sheila Brown (C)1272

Jennifer Chapman (L)425

*Charles Johnson (C)1285

Daniel Taylor (L)347

Hurworth

(2 seats)

*Roderick Burtt (C)1175

*Peter Foster (C)1121

Amanda McEwan (L)318

Krishan Bal Shukla (L)315

Lascelles

(2 seats)

*Jacqueline Maddison (L)702

Margaret Martin (C)264

*Wendy Newall (L)654

Douglas Tingate (C)252

Lingfield

(2 seats)

Paul Evans (C)368

*Ian Haszeldine (L)1103

*Frank Robson (L)974

Graham Smurthwaite (C)347

Middleton St George

(2 seats)

*Doris Jones (C)1167

*William Maybrey (C)1145

Elizabeth Muggleton (L)241

Rebecca Taylor (L)229

Mowden

(2 seats)

Margaret Bristow (L)557

*Ronald Lewis (C)1318

Jacqueline Saint (L)646

*James Stenson (C)1229

Northgate

(2 seats)

Kenneth Brown (C)299

*Eleanor Lister (L)751

*Dorothy Long (L)797

Ian Storey (C)325

Paul Thompson (BNP)151

North Road

(3 seats)

Debra Barley (C)197

Jennifer Hardy (C)211

*William Holmes (L)818

Edward Jenkinson (L)734

*Stephen Jones (LD)881

Mark Kilpatrick (BNP)154

Frederick Lawton (LD)690

Michael Nicholson (L)695

*Susan Walker (LD)963

Park East

(3 seats)

Barbara Bone (C)332

Malcolm Dunstone (LD)494

Peter Freitag (LD)518

*Cynthia Hughes ( L)816

Edward Kielb (LD)438

*Jonathan Lyonette (L)903

Brian Parkinson (C)330

*Glen Reynolds (L)741

Park West

(2 seats)

Daniel Klein (L)338

*James Ruck (C)1266

*Heather Scott (C)1266

Alison Wright (L)384

Pierremont

(3 seats)

Michael Barker (LD)515

Patricia Chapman (C)478

Brian Fiske (LD)540

*Stephen Harker (L)969

*Patrick Heaney (L)867

Jonathan Scott (C)443

Wayne Simpson (BNP)132

Joanna Summers (C)352

*Marian Swift (L)865

Colin Telfer (LD)567

Sadberge and Whessoe

(1 seat)

Ian Black (L)222

*Brian Jones (C)56