British prime minister Boris Johnson has urged “everyone to find closure and to let the healing begin” after his Conservative Party secured an 80-seat majority in Thursday’s general election.

The final seat to be confirmed was St Ives bringing the total to 365 seats for the Conservatives as voters backed his promise to “get Brexit done”.

Speaking outside 10 Downing Street, Mr Johnson said he had an “overwhelming mandate” to take the UK out of the EU by the end of January. However, he told Remain voters he wanted them to know a “One Nation” Conservative government would “never ignore” the “positive feelings of warmth and sympathy towards the other nations of Europe”.

He added that “the overwhelming priority of the British people is that we should focus, above all, on the NHS”.

Read Fintan O’Toole’s column on Johnson’s victory

Labour suffered catastrophic losses in the electionwith the party winning 203 seats, a loss of 59 seats. Party leader Jeremy Corbyn announced he would stand down before the next election.

Northern Ireland has returned more nationalists than unionists for the first time after Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) deputy leader Nigel Dodds lost his seat to Sinn Féin’s John Finucane.

The DUP won eight seats, but Sinn Féin won seven and the SDLP won two, with the Alliance winning a seat in North Down. The DUP lost two seats and its crucial influencing role supporting the Tory government.

The final seat of the 18 to declare was Fermanagh/South Tyrone where Sinn Féin’s Michelle Gildernew held the seat by 57 votes from Ulster Unionist Tom Elliott.

Liberal Democrat leader Jo Swinson lost her seat in East Dumbartonshire, and her party has won 11 seats, just one more than in 2017.

Ms Swinson was the most high-profile casualty of the night and Sir Ed Davey and president Baroness Sal Brinton were appointed as joint leaders ahead of a leadership election next year.


Apart from the Conservatives, the Scottish National Party (SNP) were the other clear winners, with 48 seats and a large majority in Scotland.