The Conservatives lost one of their leading Oxfordshire county councillors as the party's election gloom continued.

Douglas 'Choppy' Spencer, the Tory education spokesman, was ousted after 16 years serving Bicester North - the first time the seat has been won by Labour.

The Tories had high hopes of taking control of the county council and ending 16 years of political stalemate.

However, Labour and the Liberal Democrats are likely to join forces to run the council, leaving the Tories on the sidelines. The Conservatives ended with 26 seats, the same number as before. Labour increased their number of seats from 19 to 24 while the Liberal Democrats fell back from 21 to 18. The Greens still hold two seats, despite losing their leader, Sushila Dhall.

The biggest shock of the day was the defeat of Mr Spencer, who lost by 152 votes to Labour's Les Sibley, a former mayor of Bicester.

A jubilant Mr Sibley, 51, who is married with five children, said: "This is a fantastic result - a vindication for all the work we put into this election." His victory came just 24 hours after his defeat in the General Election at Banbury, where Tory MP Tony Baldry won easily.

Cllr Brian Hodgson, Labour leader on the county council, said: "This has been a magnificent day for the Labour party in Oxfordshire.

"We have 24 seats, which equals the highest that we have ever had, and we took three seats from the Tories and one from the Liberal Democrats. Les Sibley's result in Bicester North was magnificent."

Mr Spencer was unavailable for comment. However, county Conservative group leader Keith Mitchell said: "People have voted in two ballots and have been influenced by national issues. "I think it would have been a different result if the county elections had been held on their own.

"But we now have a hung council for another four years and I think that's bad for the electorate.

"They want to know who is in charge and where the buck stops."

County council chief executive Richard Shaw said: "Each election opens a new chapter in the county council's history, and this is no exception. We face many changes and challenges together and look forward to achieving much for the people of Oxfordshire."

See the fullcounty election results