The Tory majority was slashed by four fifths in David Cameron’s former seat last night as the Liberal Democrats put a resurgent performance down to fears of a hard Brexit.
In Theresa May’s first electoral test since becoming prime minister, the Conservatives’ winning margin was cut by 20,000 in Witney, Oxfordshire. Robert Courts won by 5,702 votes in what was his party’s 10th safest seat.
Voters in Yorkshire elected a Coronation Street actress to replace Jo Cox, marking an end to a divisive campaign in which the far right tried to capitalise on the first killing of a sitting MP for 26 years.
Robert Courts won 45 per cent of the vote, down from David Cameron’s 60 per cent
CHRIS RADBURN/PA
In Witney, the Lib Dems enjoyed a 19 per cent swing to knock Labour into a distant third, winning more than double