COVENTRY MESSAGE BOARD

Labour stormed to victory with an increased majority in the Oldham West and Royton by-election in Jeremy Corbyn’s first electoral test as leader.



It won 62.2 per cent of the vote, up from 54.8 per cent at May’s general election. The UK Independence party was left trailing on 23.3 per cent. Turnout, at 40.3 per cent, was typically low for a by-election.

Labour’s victory comes as the party has been roiled by a bitter split over the bombing of Syria. Some 66 MPs defied their leader to vote for air strikes on Wednesday and many complained of bullying by activists. Mr Corbyn has appealed for his supporters to desist.

Emerging victorious from the by-election, local council leader Jim McMahon called the result “staggering” and promised to make Oldham a better place. The 35-year-old son of a lorry driver is popular in the town.

The Conservatives share of the vote halved to 9.3 per cent while the Liberal Democrats lost their deposit.

Labour had denied that Mr Corbyn was a vote loser despite concerns voiced in Oldham. “We have had as many people praising what Jeremy Corbyn has done as not,” said Debbie Abrahams, MP for Oldham East and Saddleworth.

But Ian Warren, an election analyst who worked for Labour before the last election, said his polls found the Labour leader had a negative rating of -27 per cent in Greater Manchester as a whole.

“This is Jim’s victory,” he said on Twitter.

Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn has hailed a "vote of confidence" in his party after it comfortably won the Oldham West and Royton by-election.

The by-election - the first of this Parliament - was also the first major electoral test for Mr Corbyn, who was elected leader by more than half the party's membership in September.

He has faced criticism from some within his party, with few of his MPs having backed his leadership campaign while senior figures warned he would damage Labour's electoral chances.

Mr Corbyn said: "By-elections can be difficult for the party holding the seat, and turnouts are often low.

"But to increase our share of the vote since the general election is a vote of confidence in our party.

"It's a clear demonstration that Labour is the party working people trust."