Photo by Dan Kitwood/Getty Images Only around a fifth of the English local election results have been declared, with many more councils left to count through Friday and into the weekend – but one conclusion is already difficult to avoid. These are deeply troubling results for Labour in many of the battlegrounds that matter most. Chorley, Wigan and Tameside – once reliable Labour territory – have all seen major advances for Reform UK. Hartlepool, symbolic of the Conservatives’ 2021 breakthrough in the so-called “red wall”, has also swung heavily towards Reform. In Grimsby, often cited as evidence of Labour’s recovery among white working-class voters, the party has suffered severe losses. The picture suggests a significant political realignment across northern and central England. But the shift is not confined to those regions. In Portsmouth, which returned two Conservative MPs only a few years ago, the Conservatives have been reduced to the margins.…