As voting in the local elections begins, Anoosh Chakelian is joined by the New Statesman’s polling expert Ben Walker to discuss key councils to watch and predict the outcome.

They talk about the driving forces behind people’s votes, from partygate and rising living costs to potholes, and what the political consequences of the results could be.

Then they answer listeners’ questions on the impact the use of the single transferable vote (STV) system will have on the result in Scotland, and Ben’s overnight election liveblogging tips.

If you have a question for You Ask Us, email podcasts@newstatesman.co.uk

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Local elections: What would be a good night for Labour or the Tories?