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The expected results mean Britain’s political chaos could finally be over, leaving Boris with the numbers to finally push his Brexit deal through Parliament in just weeks.
Meanwhile, Jeremy Corbyn will be facing deafening calls to finally quit as Labour leader after failing to win a second general election in a row – and taking the party to its worst result in 40 years.
The party was predicted to lose 71 seats from its 2017 results.
And the exit polls put Britain on course for the biggest Tory win since 1987 – where they got a 102 seat majority under Margaret Thatcher.
Exit polls, which almost always correctly predict the outcome of general elections and are known to be accurate, put Labour on course for just 191 seats.
The SNP were set to pick up 55 seats, and the Lib Dems 13.
The polls look far better than the final YouGov predictions just days ago – which had the possibility of a hung Parliament on the cards.
The MRP study had just a 28 seat majority for Boris on the cards.
What we know so far:
- Boris Johnson has begun to break down Labour’s red wall by winning Blyth Valley – not a seat the exit poll had predicted – meaning the Tory majority could go even higher
- The pound surged by more than two per cent on the news tonight
- There were calls for Jeremy Corbyn and John McDonnell to quit after the poor election result
- Boris Johnson thanked voters in the “greatest democracy in the world” after the exit poll came in
- Lib Dem boss Jo Swinson is predicted to lose her seat in Scotland
- But the SNP surge north of the border means Boris could face another fight on Scottish independence in future
- Nigel Farage boasted that the Brexit Party have done a great job – despite them not predicted to win a single seat
Tory insiders claimed voting was looking good in northern England, where they had most of their target seats.
Another senior Tory source added: “Who wins will come to a lot of very, very close race in areas where we don’t usually win.”
Home Secretary Priti Patel told the BBC: “This has been a hard-fought general election campaign at a cold time of the year as well.
“We need to break the gridlock that has dominated Parliament for the last three years. We need a functioning working majority.”
Ex-Chancellor George Osborne said the victory was down to Labour boss Mr Corbyn.
He told ITV: “Jeremy Corbyn was the handmaiden to a Boris Johnson landslide. It’s a complete catastrophe for the left.
“Every Tory I know was cheering when Jeremy Corbyn got elected.”
Shadow cabinet minister Barry Gardiner said if the projection was right, “obviously it would be a devastating result for us”, adding: “I’m deeply, deeply depressed.”
Shadow Chancellor John McDonnell told the BBC: “If it is anything near this it is disappointing.”
And he gave a hint that Mr Corbyn could stand down in hours if it were true.
Mr McDonnell said: “Let’s see the results themselves, as I say, the appropriate decisions will be made and we’ll always make the decisions in the best interests of our party.”
Already Labour MPs started blaming Brexit for the result – but many in the party’s HQ
Shadow Justice Secretary Richard Burgon tweeted: “Disappointing Exit Poll. Let’s see if accurate.
“If, as it seems, this was a Brexit election then the next one won’t be given Johnson’s Thatcherite agenda.”
But a Labour Party spokesperson dismissed the exit poll and said: “It’s only the beginning of the night, and it’s too early to call the result.”
Labour are set to lose a string of traditional strongholds to the Tories, the poll showed.
These included Workington, Wakefield, Bolton North East and even Bishop Auckland for the very first time.
Other seats include Bolton North East, Don Valley, Halifax and Bridgend.
In Dudley North, the result would see a massive 11 per cent swing to the Tories.
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