The Conservative party became the first majority Conservative government in almost 20 years, with the Conservatives reaching an unexpected majority of 331 seats in parliament, as the UK 2015 General Election vote count drew to a close on Friday.
The results shocked most political commentators as polls in the run up to the election suggested a hung parliament to be the most likely outcome.
The Prime Minister, David Cameron, speaking after the Conservatives had secured the 326 seats required to be deemed the majority, said,
“When I stood here five years ago – our country was in the grip of an economic crisis. Five years on Britain is so much stronger.”
"Ed Miliband rang me this morning to wish me luck with the new government. It was a typically generous gesture from someone who is clearly in public service for all the right reasons,” he added.
Mr Cameron reiterated his commitment on devolution in his first address to the UK, adding,
“In this parliament, I will stay true to my word and implement as fast as I can the devolution that all parties agreed for Wales, Scotland, and Northern Ireland. Governing with respect means recognising that the different nations of our United Kingdom have their own governments, as well as the UK government.”
The Scottish National Party (SNP) in a landslide victory won 56 out of the 59 available seats.
Speaking to the BBC, the SNP leader, Nicola Sturgeon, said,
“Given that we are, unfortunate, facing another Conservative government, it’s all the more important that we’ve got a strong team of SNP MP’s standing up for Scotland. The government at Westminster cannot ignore what has happened in Scotland, people have voted overwhelmingly for Scotland’s voice to be heard for an end to austerity.”
The Conservatives received 36.9% share of the UK national votes, with Labour at 30.5%, UKIP, 12.6%, Lib Dems 7.8% and SNP 4.7%.
The leader of the Labour party Ed Miliband, stepped down from his position, and said it was “time for someone else” to take over, adding that he was “truly sorry” that he did not succeed.
In his final remarks, he said,
“We have come back before and this party will come back again.”
The leaders of the Liberal Democrat and UKIP, Nick Clegg and Nigel Farage also resigned shortly after the result.
UK parliamentary candidates detail their views on the Tamil question (07 May 2015)
The results shocked most political commentators as polls in the run up to the election suggested a hung parliament to be the most likely outcome.
The Prime Minister, David Cameron, speaking after the Conservatives had secured the 326 seats required to be deemed the majority, said,
“When I stood here five years ago – our country was in the grip of an economic crisis. Five years on Britain is so much stronger.”
"Ed Miliband rang me this morning to wish me luck with the new government. It was a typically generous gesture from someone who is clearly in public service for all the right reasons,” he added.
Mr Cameron reiterated his commitment on devolution in his first address to the UK, adding,
“In this parliament, I will stay true to my word and implement as fast as I can the devolution that all parties agreed for Wales, Scotland, and Northern Ireland. Governing with respect means recognising that the different nations of our United Kingdom have their own governments, as well as the UK government.”
The Scottish National Party (SNP) in a landslide victory won 56 out of the 59 available seats.
Speaking to the BBC, the SNP leader, Nicola Sturgeon, said,
“Given that we are, unfortunate, facing another Conservative government, it’s all the more important that we’ve got a strong team of SNP MP’s standing up for Scotland. The government at Westminster cannot ignore what has happened in Scotland, people have voted overwhelmingly for Scotland’s voice to be heard for an end to austerity.”
The Conservatives received 36.9% share of the UK national votes, with Labour at 30.5%, UKIP, 12.6%, Lib Dems 7.8% and SNP 4.7%.
The leader of the Labour party Ed Miliband, stepped down from his position, and said it was “time for someone else” to take over, adding that he was “truly sorry” that he did not succeed.
In his final remarks, he said,
“We have come back before and this party will come back again.”
The leaders of the Liberal Democrat and UKIP, Nick Clegg and Nigel Farage also resigned shortly after the result.
UK parliamentary candidates detail their views on the Tamil question (07 May 2015)