Rishi Sunak accepts responsibility for historic Tory defeat - BBC News

05/07/2024, 22:19 Rishi Sunak accepts responsibility for historic Tory defeat - BBC News
Home News Sport Weather
Home Election 2024 InDepth Israel-Gaza war Cost of Living More
War in Ukraine Climate UK World Business
Politics Parliaments Brexit
Results: parties by seats

326 seats for a majority
1 seat to go
LAB CON LD SNP SF OTH

412 121 71 9 7 29
+211 -251 +63 -38 - +15
Change since 2019
LIVE updates See all parties
Rishi Sunak apologises after

historic Tory defeat
Let us know We use cookies to give you the best online experience. Yes, I agree
Please let us know if you agree to all of these cookies.
you agree to No, take me to
cookies settings
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cd1xnzlzz99o 1/11
Sunak announces resignation as PM in Downing Street
Jennifer McKiernan Brian Wheeler

Political reporter Political reporter
@_JennyMcKiernan
4 July 2024 13818 Comments

Updated 5 July 2024 11:32 BST
Rishi Sunak has apologised to the nation following the Conservative Party's
general election defeat - the worst in its parliamentary history.
Sir Keir Starmer has led the Labour Party to a landslide victory and will take
over from Mr Sunak as the UK's prime minister.
Accepting responsibility for the result, Mr Sunak said he heard voters' "anger"
at his government.
"To the country I would like to say first and foremost I am sorry," he said.
"I have given this job my all but you have sent a clear message that the
government of the UK must change, and yours is the judgement that matters.
"I have heard your anger, your disappointment, and I take responsibility for this
loss."
LetSunak
Mr us know We use cookies
delivered his speech outsidetoNumber
give you 10,
the despite
best online experience.
earlier rain - this
you with
time agree to on hand to avoid a repeat of his sodden election
a brolly No, take me to
cookies
announcement in May. settings
Mr Sunak said he would step down as party leader, adding "not immediately
but once the formal arrangements for selecting my successor are in place".
The MP for Richmond and Northallerton insisted there would be "an orderly
transition" and also paid tribute to Sir Keir, whom he described as "a decent
and public-spirited man who I respect".
Having said goodbye to staff in Downing Street just before his speech, Mr
Sunak then got into a car with his wife Akshata to travel to offer his
resignation to the King.
In an earlier victory speech in central London, Sir Keir said "change begins
now", adding "it feels good, I have to be honest".
With nearly all results declared, Labour is projected to form the next
government, with a majority of 174. Currently they have 412 MPs, up 211 from
the last election.
The Tories are set for the worst result in their history. They have lost 250 seats
and are currently on 121 seats.
Former Prime Minister Liz Truss - whose brief, disastrous time in office led to a
slump in Tory support from which it never recovered - lost her South West
Norfolk seat to Labour by 630 votes.
Ms Truss saw her huge 32,988 majority overturned, with the Reform candidate
coming third with 9,958 votes.
She is among dozens of senior Tories who have lost their seats, including
Defence Secretary Grant Shapps, Commons leader Penny Mordaunt, Justice
Secretary Alex Chalk and former minister Sir Jacob-Rees Mogg.
Foreign Secretary James Cleverly told the BBC a "large number of people who
had previously voted Conservative have voted Reform" and the Conservatives
now had to "think hard" about how to win back their support.
Former minister Steve Baker, long a thorn in the side of Tory leaders over
Brexit, expressed relief following the news he had lost his seat after 14 years
as the MP for Wycombe.
"Thank God, I am free - it's over," he said from the empty hall where the ballots
had been counted overnight.
Let us know We use cookies to give you the best online experience.
cookies settings
Steve Baker: Thank God, I am free, it's over and I am glad
Reform UK leader Nigel Farage won a seat in Parliament at his eighth attempt,
in Clacton, promising "this is just the first step of something that is going to
stun all of you".
Reform has five MPs - including chairman Richard Tice and former Tory Lee
Anderson - and has finished second in many parts of the country, taking large
amounts of votes from the Conservatives.
In a victory speech in London, Sir Keir told cheering Labour supporters the
country was waking up to "the sunlight of hope" which was "shining once again
on a country with the opportunity after 14 years to get its future back".
He added: “Now we can look forward – walk into the morning.”
The Liberal Democrats have slightly fewer votes than Reform but have
benefitted most from the Tory collapse, surging to a record 71 MPs, including
the constituencies of three former Tory PMs - Boris Johnson, David Cameron
and Theresa May.
Lib Dem leader Sir Ed Davey said: "This is a record-breaking night for the
Liberal Democrats."
He added: "We will now work hard to keep that trust with a focus on the issues
that matter most to them, most of all the NHS and care."
The Green Party of England and Wales now has four MPs, with co-leaders
Let
Carlaus know
Denyer
We use cookies to give you the best online experience.
and AdrianPlease
Ramsay among the winners.
let us know if you agree to all of these cookies.
cookies settings
But it has been a terrible night for the SNP, which has been reduced to just
eight MPs so far.
Former Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn has defeated his old party to retain his
Islington North seat as an independent.
But another high profile former Labour MP, George Galloway, failed to retain
the Rochdale seat he won at a by-election in February, losing to Labour's Paul
Waugh.
Sir Keir Starmer's landslide is short of the 179 majority won by Tony Blair in
1997, with its vote share across the country up by just 2%, largely thanks to
big gains in Scotland, according to polling expert Sir John Curtice.
But it will mean a Labour prime minister in Downing Street for the first time
since 2010 and a battle for the future direction of the Conservatives.
LIVE: Follow all the latest general election results news
Who's in Keir Starmer's new cabinet?
What went wrong for the Conservatives?
Who is my MP now? The election in maps and charts
General election 2024: All BBC stories and analysis
cookies settings
REUTERS
Sir Keir Starmer is set to be the next UK prime minister
Penny Mordaunt, who lost to Labour by just 780 votes, had been tipped to
make another attempt to be Tory leader after the election.
Admitting defeat, she said her party had lost because it "had failed to honour
the trust people had placed in it".
Her message was echoed by Northern Ireland Secretary Chris Heaton-Harris,

who told the BBC the Tories had “lost the trust of the British people by not
delivering. That’s where it went wrong.”
He added: “We have to regroup and reconnect and actually just be a unified
Conservative Party.”
The Conservatives have lost seats they have held since the 19th or early 20th
century, across the shire counties of England.
Former attorney general Sir Robert Buckland, the first Tory MP to lose his seat
as results began rolling in, told the BBC his party was facing "electoral
Armageddon" and Labour's victory was a "big vote for change".
And he angrily lashed out at colleagues, such as former home secretary Suella
Braverman, for what he called "spectacularly unprofessional and ill-
disciplined" behaviour during the campaign.
"I'm fed up of personal agendas and jockeying for position," he added, warning
that the upcoming Tory leadership contest was "going to be like a group of
Let
bald us
menknow
We use cookies to give you the best online experience.
arguing over aPlease
comb".
let us know if you agree to all of these cookies.
cookies settings
REUTERS
Nigel Farage is promising to shake-up UK politics
The SNP is "not winning that argument" on Scottish independence, said First
Minister John Swinney.
"Opinion polls still show that about half the population in Scotland want our
country to be independent," he told the BBC.
"That's not manifested itself in the election result tonight and that's
something we've got to look at very carefully as a party and to think about
how we can remedy that situation."
Related Topics
Conservative Party Keir Starmer Plaid Cymru
Rishi Sunak Reform UK
Green Party (England and Wales) General election 2024
Labour Party Liberal Democrats
View commentsWe
| 13818
Let us know use cookies to give you the best online experience.
cookies settings
Top Stories
LIVE Keir Starmer Who's in Keir Starmer vows to serve
names new cabinet, Starmer's new whole UK as new
with Reeves as cabinet? Labour PM
chancellor and Rayner
as deputy PM 1 hour ago 8 hours ago
Features
In pictures: How One PM out and What happens next: A

Labour's landslide another in... the day in simple guide to
unfolded overnight 60 seconds Labour's election win
The big winners and Labour manifesto: Amazon at 30: What

losers on election What they plan to do next for 'The
night in government Everything Company'?
Weekly quiz: How did Andy Murray looks US cities can now
Dua Lipa start her back on his career punish homelessness.
Glastonbury party? with Sue Barker Will it help or hurt a
crisis?
Sport
cookies settings
Elsewhere on the BBC
A stylish spy thriller The fascinating, The path to love isn't

starring Tom Hughes hidden history of hats always straight
and Brian Cox How different would the world Dannii Minogue is back to play
At the height of the Cold War, be without them? Cupid and this time it’s for the
friends could be traitors and girls
no one is who they seem
iPlayer Sounds iPlayer
Can footballers enjoy

the Euros as fans?
Patrick and Joe discuss
whether players can, or
whether it's just a busman’s
holiday
Sounds
Most Read
1 Who's in Keir Starmer's

new cabinet? 2 General election 2024 in
maps and charts
3 Reeves: 'There's not a huge

amount of money' 4 Farage vows to change
politics forever after win
5 What went wrong for the

Conservatives? 6
Starmer vows to serve
whole UK as new Labour
Let us know PMexperience.
We use cookies to give you the best online
cookies settings
7 Biggest-ever gap between

number of votes and MPs 8 Junior doctors pay talks to
start next week - Streeting
hits Reform and Greens
9 Sunak's 'dismal end' and

'bland' Starmer: World 10 Singer Sabrina Carpenter
breaks UK chart record
media reacts to UK election
BBC News Services

On your mobile On smart speakers
Get news alerts Contact BBC News
Best of the BBC
cookies settings
Who will create the ultimate The journey to becoming a sporting

mixtape? icon
Sounds IPlayer
A fun and forensic look at fame Britain’s most sensational

seamsters
Sounds IPlayer
Home Weather CBBC Bitesize Local News
News iPlayer CBeebies Arts Three
Sport Sounds Food Taster
Terms of Use About the BBC Privacy Policy Cookies Accessibility Help Parental Guidance
Contact the BBC Make an editorial complaint Get Personalised Newsletters
Why you can trust the BBC
© 2024 BBC. The BBC is not responsible for the content of external sites. Read about our approach to external
linking.
cookies settings

Rishi Sunak accepts responsibility for historic Tory defeat - BBC News

Uploaded by

Document Information

Copyright

Available Formats

Share this document

Share or Embed Document

Sharing Options

Did you find this document useful?

Is this content inappropriate?

Copyright:

Available Formats

Rishi Sunak accepts responsibility for historic Tory defeat - BBC News

Uploaded by

Copyright:

Available Formats

05/07/2024, 22:19 Rishi Sunak accepts responsibility for historic Tory defeat - BBC News

Home News Sport Weather

Home Election 2024 InDepth Israel-Gaza war Cost of Living More

War in Ukraine Climate UK World Business

Politics Parliaments Brexit

Results: parties by seats

LAB CON LD SNP SF OTH

LIVE updates See all parties

Rishi Sunak apologises after

Sunak announces resignation as PM in Downing Street

Jennifer McKiernan Brian Wheeler

4 July 2024 13818 Comments

Steve Baker: Thank God, I am free, it's over and I am glad

He added: “Now we can look forward – walk into the morning.”

LIVE: Follow all the latest general election results news

Who's in Keir Starmer's new cabinet?

What went wrong for the Conservatives?

Who is my MP now? The election in maps and charts

General election 2024: All BBC stories and analysis

Sir Keir Starmer is set to be the next UK prime minister

Her message was echoed by Northern Ireland Secretary Chris Heaton-Harris,

Nigel Farage is promising to shake-up UK politics

Conservative Party Keir Starmer Plaid Cymru

Rishi Sunak Reform UK

Green Party (England and Wales) General election 2024

Labour Party Liberal Democrats

In pictures: How One PM out and What happens next: A

The big winners and Labour manifesto: Amazon at 30: What

A stylish spy thriller The fascinating, The path to love isn't

iPlayer Sounds iPlayer

Can footballers enjoy

1 Who's in Keir Starmer's

3 Reeves: 'There's not a huge

5 What went wrong for the

7 Biggest-ever gap between

9 Sunak's 'dismal end' and

BBC News Services

Get news alerts Contact BBC News

Best of the BBC

Who will create the ultimate The journey to becoming a sporting

A fun and forensic look at fame Britain’s most sensational

Home Weather CBBC Bitesize Local News

News iPlayer CBeebies Arts Three

Sport Sounds Food Taster

Contact the BBC Make an editorial complaint Get Personalised Newsletters

Why you can trust the BBC

You might also like