Tories keep Ukip at bay to win Newark: but what about Ed?

Conservatives in buoyant mood: does Labour really look like an alternative government?

The Mole
(Image credit: 2014 Getty Images)

The Tories have pricked the Ukip bubble by winning the Newark by-election with a majority of 7,403. And Conservative Chancellor George Osborne, in buoyant mood on the Today programme this morning, was able to declare it a “disastrous result” for Ed Miliband after Labour came third in a seat they held under Tony Blair.

The new MP for the Nottinghamshire constituency, replacing the disgraced Patrick Mercer, is Robert Jenrick. His margin of victory is less than half the Tories’ 16,000-plus majority at the 2010 general election, but a big drop was expected.

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is the pseudonym for a London-based political consultant who writes exclusively for The Week.co.uk.