Labour have lost a crucial Carlisle seat to the Conservatives, calling into question the future control of the city council.

The Yewdale result looked too close to call for the majority of the night.

Eventually it went to Conservative Robert Currie, who finished ahead of Labour rival Timothy Linford by 91 votes.

All other seats were returned by their previous parties.

It means Labour are still the largest party on Carlisle City Council but have no overall control.

They now have 25 councillors, the Conservatives have 22, while the Liberal Democrats have one councillor and there are also four Independents.

Exactly how the council will be run will now be decided during discussions between these groups.

All eyes were on the Yewdale seat as candidates waited for counting to get underway in the Carlisle City Council elections.

Conservative supporters were hopeful of taking the seat, though admitted it will be close.

Labour hoped they have done enough to hold it, but agreed it was too close to call for most of the night.

A delighted Mr Currie said he was over the moon to be named Yewdale's new Conservative councillor.

"It feels unbelievable. It doesn't quite seem real," he said.

"I always knew it was going to be close. We only won a seat in Yewdale for the first time in 10 years last year.

"My main priority is going to be to make sure the council delivers on key issues - things that people really care about rather than vanity projects."

Other seats attracting a strong interest throughout the evening were Botcherby, Belle Vue and Belah.

Of the 17 seats up this time around, Labour held eight, the Conservatives held seven and gained one, and Independent candidate Rob Betton held his Botcherby seat.

Afterwards Labour's Colin Glover, who remains leader of the council for the time being, said they were disappointed to have lost Yewdale, but equally delighted to have held other keys seats. They included Belle Vue, where Jessica Riddle, who had already been appointed as the new deputy mayor provided she wasn't voted out, retained her seat - winning by more than 230 votes in the end.

"It's been a mixed night. We always knew that Belle Vue and Yewdale would be quite close," he said.

"As it turns out we won Belle Vue by a quite considerable amount and I'm delighted to see Jessica reelected. That was a great result.

"Last time it was up was in a by-election last year, where we only won by four votes, so that's a big step forward.

"Yewdale is naturally a disappointment. Tim was an excellent candidate and I'm sure at some point he will be an excellent councillor."

Asked about the future control of the council, he said it was too early to say.

It is expected that there will be discussions between the various parties and Independent candidates in the coming days to see if any agreements can be reached.

Labour would have needed a total of 27 councillors to secure overall control, meaning they are two short.

Asked whether the Independents would consider some sort of pact with Labour, Jack Paton - one of Botcherby's three Independent councillors - said: "Only if it benefits the people of the city".

Mr Betton, who secured his seat by 345 votes despite strong efforts from Labour to regain Botcherby, added: "Local elections are all about the local people, not national politics or colours."

Who is my councillor?

Belah: Gareth Ellis, Conservative
Belle Vue: Jessica Riddle, Labour
Botcherby: Rob Betton, Independent
Brampton: Mike Mitchelson, Conservative
Castle: Anne Glendinning, Labour
Currock: Sue Crawford, Labour
Dalston : Ann McKerrell, Conservative
Denton Holme: Chris Southward, Labour
Harraby: Paul Carrigan, Labour
Longtown and Rockliffe: Ray Bloxham, Conservative
Morton: Colin Stothard, Labour
St Aidans: Anne Quilter, Labour
Stanwix Rural: Marilyn Bowman, Conservative
Stanwix Urban: Elizabeth Mallinson, Conservative
Upperby: David Graham, Labour
Wetheral: Stephen Higgs, Conservative
Yewdale: Robert Currie, Conservative