THE Tory revival continued in Bury last night with the Conservatives gaining two seats from the council's ruling Labour group.

In a repeat of last year the local election story was Tory gains while apathy reigns: the Conservatives took Ramsbottom in dramatic fashion - by 32 votes after two recounts - and Church from Labour on a day of very low turnout - just 28.14 per cent across the borough.

But the surprise package of the day were the new Environment and Wildlife Coalition, who beat the Liberal Democrats into fourth in every ward in which they stood against them.

In Bury South the Tories still have no presence, while the Liberal Democrats maintained their stranglehold on Holyrood.

Council leader Derek Boden, who held onto his Besses seats despite polling fewer than 1,000 votes, said the day had gone well for Labour, especially in the south.

Ivan Lewis, Bury South's Labour MP, described it as "a vindication for the council and the Government."

John Smith returned to the council chamber with the biggest majority of the night - 1,008 - in the Redvales seat vacated by the borough's newest Freeman, David Davies.

Labour's hold on the council could not be threatened - only 16 seats were up for grabs, with Labour holding 38 seats, the Tories six, Lib Dems three and the new kids on the block, the Environment and Wildlife Coalition defending one seat courtesy of Glyn Heath's defection before the poll. The coalition were standing in six seats, with their highest vote of the night for Michael Wellock in Church ward, where there was no Liberal Democrat candidate. They refused to comment on their performance at the count last night.

The Conservatives still have no seats in Bury South, but ran Labour close in Pilkington Park, with sitting councillor Pam Walker holding on by just 161 votes.

In Bury North they did better: Bill Johnson, the Father of the Council, comfortably held the Tottington seat he has served for nearly four decades.

Group leader David Higgin was delighted. "We have taken back the seats we should never have lost in the first place. We have made a magnificent gain in Ramsbottom. Next year, watch this space."

The highest drama of the night was in Ramsbottom, where the ward went to two recounts before Barry Theckston was finally declared the new councillor, leaving Sheila Barnes the sole Labour survivor in the borough's northernmost ward.

Like the Tories, the Lib Dems had a night of two halves. Vic D'Albert, the party's first ever councillor in Bury, held on to their stronghold seat in Holyrood, and they performed well in Radcliffe Central and Sedgley, pushing the Tories into third. But they made no inroads in the North.

Leader Wilf Davison said: "We did superbly well in Holyrood and Sedgley, where we were only 161 votes off winning the seat. It gives us a strong base to build on."

New make-up of the council: Labour 37 seats, Conservative eight seats, Lib Dem three seats.

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