LABOUR is running the SNP close in Glasgow and could be on the cusp of taking back control of the city chambers, the party’s leader has said. 

Malcolm Cunning convincingly won his own seat in the Linn ward, with the party gaining a second councillor at the expense of the Tories, 

They’ve also gained councillors in Shettleston and North East

Councillor Cunning said: "There's a clear shift in Glasgow, and that shift is towards us.”

“I've been coming to counts since 1974, in one way or another, but in terms of in here in Glasgow, these are the best results for Labour since well before 2015."

The council leader added: “At the end of today, the two major groups in Glasgow City Council, the SNP and Labour are going to be fairly close together, Who's going to be slightly ahead? We won't know till five o'clock.”

Asked if he had spoken to the Greens about an informal coalition, Mr Cunning said: “Not yet. We will see where we're at a wee bit later in the afternoon. And if we need chats, we'll have chats.”

SNP group leader Susan Aitken was re-elected but saw her vote fall by around 10 per cent, with the Scottish Green candidate Holly Bruce winning the Langside ward on first preference votes. 

Councillor Aitken said the campaign had been “enormously challenging”. 

“It has been challenging for me personally, a lot of the time. As I say, I believe we have a record to be absolutely proud of. There are things that simply would not have happened over the past five years if the SNP hadn't been in power. 

“The equal pay settlement being one of them, and I don't believe Glasgow would have hosted COP 26 had it not been for the lead that we've shown in climate ambition for this post-industrial city. 

“Five years wasn't long enough to undo all of Labour's mismanagement from the previous forty.

“Whether we'll have another opportunity to continue the work that we've started is too early to say, I hope that we do because we've got an awful lot of work still to do.”

Asked if she was considering her position, Councillor Aitken said: “I think it's a bit early to say. We'll see what the results are at the end of the day. We've only had a couple of wards to declare so far. So a lot more still to come.”