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With a general election looming, what counts as gains and losses for the main parties in next week's locals?

Sky's election analyst Michael Thrasher tells us what to look out for:

By Daniel Dunford, senior data journalist

There might not be a general election just yet, but there are important votes that will define how the areas around us are run for the next four years.

See what's happening where you are here:

With the local elections just over a week away, deputy political editor Sam Coates explains why they matter and what they might tell us about the upcoming general election.

"There isn't a single safe prosecution brought by the Post Office in the last couple of decades," Conservative MP and former minister David Davis has told Sky News.

He was responding to comments made by a lawyer representing former sub-postmasters, who told Sky News the Post Office scandal extends "greatly beyond" faulty Horizon software (see previous post).

Paul Marshall said problems with other systems which have been "overlooked" mean there are "no convictions" secured by the Post Office against any sub-postmaster "that could or should properly be treated as safe".

Sir Davis says although the government has done a "great deal already" to exonerate Horizon victims, "we probably have to do more".

He cites a report which he says found there are other cases that "at least deserved a very close look and probable exoneration, and that didn't happen".

He estimates the courts could go through "nearly all the cases in three or six months if we set ourselves the task of doing it".

He describes the Post Office as "a public body which wasn't serving the public".

By Adele Robinson, business correspondent

The Post Office scandal extends "greatly beyond" faulty Horizon software, according to a lawyer for victims.

Paul Marshall, representing former sub-postmasters, says problems with third party systems in branches, such as ATMs, have been "overlooked".

A 2013 report commissioned by the Post Office, and not made public at the time, states: "Removing the ATM reduces the risk of (the sub-postmaster) being suspended... as does the presence of lottery tickets, (banking) services, and DVLA processing."

It indicates there were issues known to the Post Office with third party systems within branches - separate to Horizon software.

Barrister Paul Marshall believes, as a result, there are "no convictions" secured by the Post Office against any sub-postmaster "that could or should properly be treated as safe".

He says evidence of third party errors, such as ATMs, shows "the scandal extends considerably beyond, greatly beyond, it might be said, the limited focus of bugs in Horizon".

Blanket exoneration legislation being introduced this summer will only quash convictions brought about "by erroneous Horizon evidence".

Mr Marshall asserts that postmasters who have had appeals against convictions rejected by the Court of Appeal may have lost because their offences didn't fall within the "narrow scope" of Horizon issues.

Read more here:

The Commons is currently debating the Renters (Reform) Bill.

One of the proposed changes for this legislation was to ban Section 21 - so-called "no-fault" - evictions.

But the government is now seeking to water down these measures - saying that any ban would wait for a review of the legal system's ability to hear cases related to the evictions.

Jacob Young, a housing minister, was asked about this during the debate, and what resources were being offered with the court system under considerable stress at the moment.

Mr Young points to a previously invested £1.2m for a new online end-to-end possession process, before announcing an extra £11m for the delivery of a new digital system to help the courts.

Leaving the European Convention on Human Rights is "not necessary" to follow through with the government's Rwanda policy, the foreign secretary Lord Cameron has said.

The legislation, which aims to send illegal migrants to Rwanda, passed through parliament this week after months of wrangling between the House of Commons and House of Lords.

It is expected to face legal challenges, with the prime minister previously suggesting the UK could leave the ECHR if it tried to prevent him implementing the policy.

But speaking to ITV's Peston show, Lord Cameron said: "I don't think it's necessary to leave the ECHR, I don't think that needs to happen to make this policy work."

Asked whether he would have pursued the policy while he was prime minister, Lord Cameron said: "We had a totally different situation because [we] could return people directly to France.

"Now, I'd love that situation to be the case again, that's the most sensible thing. People land on a beach in Kent, you take them straight back to France, you therefore break the model of the people smugglers. That's not available at the moment. It's simply not possible."

Asked whether this is because of Brexit, he said: "Because of the situation we're in, because of the attitude of others and all the rest of it."

Downing Street said a deal with an EU country is not possible because the bloc would insist on the UK taking a quota of migrants as part of the agreement. which the UK "would not agree to".

People voting in local elections in England on 2 May will need to provide photo ID.

It is the second year the requirement has been in place - but in 2023,14,000 people couldn't cast their ballot because they didn't take ID to the polling booth.

There are 22 different types of ID you can use - and if you don't have any of them, you can register for a Voter Authority Certificate.

Here's everything you need to know to avoid being caught out:

By David Blevins, senior Ireland correspondent

Sir Jeffrey Donaldson, the former leader of the Democratic Unionist Party, has appeared at court charged with rape and other historical sex offences.

He has been charged with one count of rape, one count of gross indecency towards a child and nine counts of sexual assault on dates between 1985 and 2006.

His wife, Eleanor Donaldson, 58, appeared alongside him in court and is charged with aiding and abetting him.

Both were released on bail after appearing at Newry Magistrates Court in Co Down.

Donaldson, 61, who is Northern Ireland's longest-serving MP, was suspended by the party following his arrest last month.

In a statement at the time, the DUPsaid: "The Party Chairman has received a letter from Sir Jeffrey Donaldson MP confirming that he has been charged with allegations of an historical nature and indicating that he is stepping down as Leader of the Democratic Unionist Party with immediate effect.

"In accordance with the Party Rules, the Party Officers have suspended Mr Donaldson from membership, pending the outcome of a judicial process."

Donaldson said he would be strenuously contesting the charges in his resignation letter.

Read more here:

Housing Secretary Michael Gove is speaking to the Home Building Federation today, as the government's Renters (Reform) Bill returns to parliament.

In his speech, Mr Gove hints that reforming nutrient neutrality rules to increase housebuilding - a policy defeated by Labour and the Lords in parliament recently - may be in the party's next manifesto.

He is also asked by chair John Pienaar about taking on the "NIMBYs" - an acronym meaning "not in my backyard".

This is a term - often used disparagingly - for people who oppose building more houses in their area.

Mr Gove says he does not believe the right course of action is to "take on" NIMBYs, but rather work with them.

However, he does admit that some are "irrational" - and that he has taken on those that needed to be.

This includes those within his own party.

Mr Gove's attempts to reform renting have struggled to pass through the Commons due to opposition to government policy by backbench Conservatives.