UK election: Jeremy Corbyn’s time as Labour leader running out after ‘disappointing night’

Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s Conservative Party appears poised to claim a significant majority, leaving Labour to confront questions about its future

Corbyn, an avowed socialist, shifted Labour away from the centre ground that underpinned three Labour majority governments led by Tony Blair

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Labour Party leader Jeremy Corbyn after winning his north London electoral seat. Photo: Reuters

Published: 11:48am, 13 Dec 2019Updated: 12:32pm, 13 Dec 2019

Britain’s opposition Labour Party leader Jeremy Corbyn said he would not lead the party into the next election after admitting it had been a “very disappointing night”.

An exit poll and early results showed Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s Conservative Party were set for a resounding victory in Britain’s election, allowing him to deliver Brexit on January 31.

That leaves Labour, a 100-year-old party born out of the trade union movement, wrestling with what went wrong and what to do about it.

“This is obviously a very disappointing night for the Labour Party with the result that we’ve got,” Corbyn said after winning his north London electoral seat.

“I will not lead the party in any future general election campaign,” he said, adding that the party needed to reflect and that he would lead the party as it discussed its future.

Asked whether she thought she would hold on to her seat in the northern city of Stoke-on-Trent, a traditional Labour stronghold, the party’s candidate Ruth Smeeth bluntly replied: “I’ve definitely lost.”