By-election blow as Labour wins victories in two Tory strongholds and Keir Starmer hails ‘fantastic result’
, Labour's Damien Egan defeated Tory Sam Bromiley by a majority of 2,501, despite it previously being safely in the Tories' grips.
“I think one of the most disappointing things for me though is the turnout in the by-elections was so significantly down compared to the previous general elections in both seats. I want to see people actively participating in democracy. The Labour leader hailed the “fantastic” results, insisting they demonstrate people "want change and are ready to put their faith in a changed Labour Party to deliver it".
Speaking from the election count in Kingswood, former Cabinet minister Jacob Rees-Mogg sought to downplay the defeats.“By-elections are an opportunity for people not to turn out, to protest, and at ensuing general elections they don’t give a consistent guide to what happens.”While Labour has held a sustained double-digit advantage over the Tories in national opinion polls, the circumstances over the by-elections did not make things easier for Mr Sunak.
The Government has also now clocked up more by-election losses in any single Parliament than any administration since the 1960s.
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