British Chancellor Rishi Sunak has conceded defeat in the country’s general election. The results show the opposition Labour Party winning more than 400 seats, while Sunak’s Conservative Party is leading with 110 seats.
“Labour has won this general election and I have called Sir Keir Starmer to congratulate him on the victory. Today there is a peaceful, orderly transfer of power and in good faith on both sides which should give us all confidence in the stability and future of our country,” Rishi Sunak said, addressing supporters in Richmond and Northern Allerton.
“I’m sorry. I take responsibility for this defeat,” he added.
Mr Sunak will hand in his resignation to King Charles III, the head of state, who will then ask Mr Starmer, leader of the largest party in Parliament, to form a government.
Keir Starmer’s Labour party will come to power facing daunting challenges that contributed to the Conservative government’s decline – a struggling economy, ageing public services and falling living standards.
Keir Starmer will be Britain’s next prime minister, and his centre-left Labour party is expected to win a landslide majority in parliamentary elections, defeating Rishi Sunak’s party and ending 14 years of often turbulent Conservative rule.
Despite Starmer’s landslide victory, opinion polls show support for him and his party is low and he comes to power at a time when the country faces a series of difficult challenges.
Britain’s tax burden is set to hit its highest level since just after World War Two, its net debt is roughly equal to annual economic output, living standards are falling and public services are in decline, particularly the strike-plagued National Health Service.