Video: Leamington and Warwick Labour MP Matt Western vows to turn around “a decade of decay”

Mr Western, who ousted Conservative Chris White by just 799 votes in 2017, defended the seat by only 789 two years later but bolstered that to more than 12,000 this time – more than double Labour’s previous best majority on the patch.

His vote only went up by a couple of hundred but the Tories tanked with James Uffindell gaining 11,563 votes while Reform UK’s Nigel Clarke took 5,154 – the Brexit Party had less than 1,000 in 2019.

Overall turnout (66.1 per cent) dropped by almost five per cent but the national picture, with Labour returning to power with a landslide victory after 14 years in opposition, left Mr Western feeling bullish.

“For two years we have waited, since the resignation of (Boris) Johnson the public have wanted a general election and finally we got one. Now they have made their collective voices heard," he said.

“The people left desperate over a decade of decay, suffering a cost of living crisis, people feeling cheated by their own government, and despite the government’s most cynical efforts to disenfranchise people with the introduction of photo ID and postal vote failures, the people have responded and voted for change.

“Today we turn the page. Our country faces a new chapter, a new future of optimism, of possibilities, of greater and wider prosperity and lower inequality, a mission-led government driven by a determination to deliver a decade of renewal.

“After 14 years it may sound radical, repairing our streets, reviving our NHS, rebuilding our schools and education system, restoring the public services that people care about.

“Keir Starmer will lead a government that will put country before party.”

Despite his defeat, Mr Uffindell said it had been “an utter privilege to stand” before congratulating his rival.

“Warwick and Leamington really is the best place to live in the world and I wish you all the best for the next five years,” he said.

*Labour won the UK general election in a landslide - Keir Starmer will be the new prime minister.

After 14 years, the Conservatives lost power in a ‘catastrophic’ defeat.