THE Conservatives increased their dominance on Buckinghamshire County Council at Thursday's local elections, gaining four seats from the Lib Dems, but losing two to the same party. The party now has 40 members on the 54-seat council.

That was the number they had forecast in the days leading up to the election.

There was a win in Stokenchurch, where Frank Downe took the seat left vacant by veteran Liberal Alf Plumridge, who retired.

The Conservatives took Denham from the only Independent member left on the council Stella Lee.

They won Aylesbury northern where Lib Dem Susie Pierce, who was not seeking re-election, had hardly been seen at county hall since she started training for the Bar.

The Tories also won Michael Brand's seat in Amersham east, in a surprise victory.

Mr Brand took over the seat at a by-election in 1998 after the death of Peter Mullins in a car cash. Mr Mullins had been a Conservative before defecting to the Lib Dems.

The Lib Dems won two seats from the Conservatives. In Ivinghoe, where the former leader of the Conservative Group on the county council, Mark Greenburgh, retired, Aylesbury district councillor for the area, Avril Davies, took the seat.

The Lib Dems also nabbed Chesham east from Conservative Noel Brown, who had held it for the past four years.

Lib Dems now have nine county council members including their leader Pam Crawford, who was defending a very slim majority in Chesham West.

The Labour party had five seats, all in High Wycombe, before the election and it is in the same position today. It had hoped to win Conservative-held Cressex and Frogmoor with Adam Gielgud, but failed. On the other hand, the Conservatives had hoped to take Bowerdean and Daws Hill, from Labour's Ian Bates but failed.