Councils that are piloting all-postal ballots in tomorrow's elections are set to show a big rise in turn-out, government figures suggest.

Today's Times reports that voter apathy and the war have damaged Labour's election prospects.

Experts are predicting up to 500 Labour seats could be lost but they also see little joy for the Tories, who can expect to gain between 100 and 200 councillors.

The Guardian focuses on the Liberal Democrat target council of York, a Labour flagship which will fall with the exchange of just one seat tomorrow.

In Leicester, the trade secretary Patricia Hewitt and other Labour activists have been accused of collecting postal votes from supporters in order to ensure their delivery. The practice is not against the law but gives the "impression of impropriety" according to the Electoral Reform Society.