Labour wins general election, Keir Starmer will be UK prime minister

BY: BBC NEWS

The Labour Party has won the 2024 general election, and Sir Keir Starmer will now be the next prime minister of the United Kingdom.

Labour reached 326 seats just after 5am on Friday – that’s the magic number needed to form a majority.

This means Keir Starmer won’t need the support of any other parties to form a government.

By 7 am, Labour had won almost 410 seats, handing the Conservatives one of the biggest defeats in its history.

Keir Starmer said doing so well “feels good”, and added he’s “ready to serve our country, ready to restore Britain to the service of working people”.

Key points from election night

• The Labour Party currently have more than 400 seats and the Conservatives have 110
• Worst ever result in Conservative Party history
• The Liberal Democrats have gained lots of seats, whereas the Scottish National Party (SNP) have lost most of theirs
• Former prime minister Liz Truss has lost her seat of South West Norfolk
• Record high number of gay, women and ethnic minority MPs expected to be elected

Election night and morning – as it happened

Keir Starmer found out he had held his seat of Holborn and St Pancras not long before the news of their majority was announced, and in his victory speech, he said: “The country has spoken and they’re ready for change.

“The change begins right here. Because this is your democracy, your community and your future. You have voted. It is now time for us to deliver.”

It was a difficult night for the Conservatives, who are predicted to lose 241 seats when all the votes are counted.

This would make it the worst ever defeat for the party in Parliamentary history.

The now outgoing prime minister Rishi Sunk has defended his seat, Richmond in Yorkshire.

He said: “The British people have delivered a sobering verdict, and there is much to learn and reflect from.”

Sunak said he knew Labour had won and had already called Keir Starmer to congratulate him.

He has now travelled from Yorkshire to London where he will later make a speech from Number 10 Downing Street.

Many prominent Conservative figures, including those serving in Rishi Sunak’s top team, have also lost their seats.

Former prime minister Liz Truss has lost her seat of South West Norfolk to Labour.

She had a majority of 26,000 majority at the 2019 election, but this reduced to 11,217 on Friday morning.

The Leader of the House of Commons, Penny Mordaunt, was one of the names in the running to replace Rishi Sunk as party leader should he step down.

She has however lost her seat of Portsmouth North to now Labour MP, Amanda Martin.

The Liberal Democrats have on the other hand had a very good night so far.

Leader Sir Ed Davey is hoping for the “best result for a century” as they are predicted to end the election with 66 seats, meaning they will once again be the third largest party in the House of Commons.

This was until recently the Scottish National Party (SNP).

Nigel Farage, leader of the Reform party, has won in Clacton. He has run to be an MP before, but this is the first time he has been successful.

He was a prominent figure during the Brexit campaign, and was previously leader of the UK Independence Party (UKIP).

The Green Party have increased their seats from one to four.

This includes their seat in Brighton and Hove, where party leader Sian Berry sits as an MP.

Elsewhere in the UK, the SNP, which until now had 43 seats, are expected to go down to six.

The SNP leader John Swinney has said it’s been a “very, very difficult and damaging” night for his party.

Scottish Labour have already made gains, and its leader, Anas Sadat, has said he’s “confident we will have a majority” in Scotland, which would be their first since ex-SNP leader Nicola Sturgeon came to power in 2015.

In Wales, Labour have made significant gains, winning many seats back from the Tories.

Three previous Welsh secretaries (the person in the cabinet responsible for issues to do with Wales) failed to keep their seats: Alun Cairns, Stephen Crabb and Simon Hart.

The current Welsh Secretary, David TC Davies, has also predicted he will lose his seat.

The Liberal Democrats have won Brecon, meaning they have an MP in Wales for the first time since 2019.

Plaid Cymru, a party that only has representatives in Wales, are predicted to win four seats in total.

In Northern Ireland, the Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) has lost one of its eight seats and may lose more, meaning Sinn Féin might become the Northern Irish party with the most MPs.