Tom Lowe

In a small town in the Black Country last night, a political rally took place which should have the two main parties feeling extremely nervous. Willenhall, on the outskirts of Wolverhampton, doesn’t even have a train station. Yet well over a thousand supporters packed out a wedding venue to see the Brexit Party’s latest rally, filling every seat, standing in the aisles and exhibiting a greater enthusiasm than has been seen in British politics since the rise of Jeremy Corbyn. The Brexit Party launched only a few weeks ago but already this is looking like a movement which could have a profound effect on Britain's politics. “I’ve never seen anything like this,” said Betty Mitchell, 85, “it’s people power.

The Tories are braced for a drubbing in today's local elections, but with the bar set so low will things be as bad as expected for the party? In the lead-up to the vote, Conservatives have been somewhat sheepish on the doorsteps – hardly a surprise, perhaps, given the fallout from Brexit. So will Tory voters stay away? Or will they switch sides to Labour? The mood across Britain is certainly febrile, and after three years of chaos in Westminster, it could be the smaller parties – the Greens, Ukip and the Lib Dems – who see the biggest gains. Here are the results to watch out for: Midnight Broxbourne: The Hertfordshire council will be among the first to declare.

Small issues – the construction of a hated roundabout or an outbreak of pot holes – can matter a lot at local elections. This year however the mood is different. Traumatised by Brexit, voters have been itching to vent their frustrations at the ballot box one way or another. With the two main parties in the stocks, today's polls could be a golden opportunity for the most established small party, the Lib Dems. It would certainly be a long time coming. The party once known as the “yellow peril” lost 750 seats in 2011, then a further 400 in 2015.