The Liberal Democrats have won the Tiverton and Honiton by-election with more than 22,000 votes for candidate Richard Foord, defeating his Conservative rival by over 7,000 votes. Similarly in Wakefield, Labour candidate Simon Lightwood won by 4,925 votes, overturning a majority of 3,358.
The two by-elections were called after their existing Conservative MPs resigned. In Devon, Tiverton and Honiton’s MP Neil Parish resigned in April 2022 after being accused of – and subsequently admitting to – watching pornography in Parliament. Wakefield, in West Yorkshire, saw its by-election called after ex-Conservative MP Imran Ahmad Khan resigned after being jailed.
Both results have broadly been recognised as a referendum on public confidence in the Conservative government, with many voters evidently switching allegiances away from the Conservatives as the pressure for Prime Minister Boris Johnson to resign continues to mount.
‘The people of Britain have spoken’
Former Army major, and now Liberal Democrat MP, Richard Foord described the outcome – a 30% swing to the Lib Dems – as an ‘extraordinary and historic result which has sent a shockwave through British politics.’
He added; ‘Tonight the people of Britain have spoken. They’ve sent a loud and clear message: it’s time for Boris Johnson to go, and go now.’
Foord made a promise to ‘work tirelessly’ for his constituents in Tiverton and Honiton, stating: ‘Whether you supported me or someone else, I want to let you know I’m here to represent you and stand up for everyone in Tiverton and Honiton.’
Liberal Democract leader Tim Davey called the result a ‘stunning win’ that should be ‘a wake-up call for all those Conservative MPs propping up Boris Johnson.’
Davey added that ‘[the Conservatives] cannot afford to ignore this result.’
‘The Tory Party is absolutely imploding’
In Wakefield, the 12.7% swing from Conservative to Labour has been hailed by Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer as ‘a great result for Labour.’
Starmer added on a visit to Ossett, a market town in the Wakefield constituency, that ‘the Tory Party is absolutely imploding’, and that ‘they know they’re out of ideas and they’re out of touch.
‘If they had any decency they’d get out of the way for the next Labour government because what happened here in Wakefield was people exercising their judgment on this Conservative government and voting no confidence.’
Speaking after the result was declared, newly-elected Labour MP and NHS worker Simon Lightwood said that the outcome ‘turned the page on Tory neglect.’
He continued: ‘The people of Wakefield have spoken on behalf of the British people.
‘They have said, unreservedly: ‘Boris Johnson, your contempt for this country is no longer tolerated.”’
In an interview with the BBC, Lightwood added that the result ‘says that Labour is making real progress, rebuilding that red wall, rebuilding the trust of the electorate and people are ready for a fresh start.’