|
Labour holds on in Hartlepool
Labour has fended off a strong Liberal Democrat challenge in the Hartlepool by-election, while the Conservatives have dropped to fourth place.
Iain Wright, the Labour candidate, polled 12,752 votes, compared with 10,719 for Lib Dem Jody Dunn.
That meant Labour's previous majority of over 14,000 was reduced to just 2,033.
There was more gloom for the Conservatives as candidate Jeremy Middleton finished fourth, behind the UK Independence Party.
He took 3,044 votes, behind third placed UKIP challenger Stephen Allison who polled 3,193 votes.
Following the announcement of the result, Wright said the outcome was bad news for the Tories and Lib Dems.
"The hard working families of Hartlepool have shown they believe in a Labour government," he said.
"Tonight's result is great news for Tony Blair, a huge disappointment for Charles Kennedy and an absolute disaster for Michael Howard."
For the Liberal Democrats, party president Simon Hughes told the BBC he was disappointed not to have won.
But he argued the party had not expected to win, and had still put in a strong showing.
And Conservative spokesman David Willetts accepted the outcome was a poor one for his party.
"It is a blow, and it is all the more frustrating because we know on the doorstep that people are getting fed up with this Labour government," he said.
UKIP's Roger Knapman said his party's showing proved it could mount a challenge to the main parties.
"It's very encouraging for us," he said. "Tonight means we approach the general election with some confidence."
National impact
There will be relief in Labour circles that the party has avoided a third by-election defeat following Brent East and Leicester South.
But in reality the result holds little positive news for any of the main parties.
Labour has seen its vote collapse yet again, with a previously safe seat seeing its majority drastically reduced by Charles Kennedy's troops.
For the Lib Dems there will be disappointment that they failed to pull off another victory, although their strong challenge will provide some grounds for optimism.
And the result also spells bad news for the Conservatives on the eve of their conference, illustrating the mountain the party still has to climb if it is to gain a majority of seats at the next general election.
|
