Stay up to date with notifications from The Independent

Notifications can be managed in browser preferences.

Battersea election result: Labour overturns large Conservative majority as minister Jane Ellison loses seat

'These are not people we should be losing from parliament, and there will be a very big post-mortem coming,' says George Osborne

Adam Withnall
Friday 09 June 2017 03:02 BST
Comments
Then-health minister Jane Ellison speaking in the Commons in 2015
Then-health minister Jane Ellison speaking in the Commons in 2015 (PA)

Your support helps us to tell the story

From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.

At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.

The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.

Your support makes all the difference.

Labour has overturned Conservative minister Jane Ellison's majority of almost 8,000 in the London seat of Battersea, in the first major scalp of the general election as early results continue to come in.

Ms Ellison was a junior minister in the Department of Health before she was named financial secretary to the Treasury last year.

She first became an MP when she won the Battersea seat in 2010 with a majority of almost 6,000, and extended her lead in 2015 to 7,938.

But when the seat was declared at 2.02am on Friday morning it became Labour's best result of the night so far, with the party's candidate Marsha De Cordova taking 25,292 votes to Ms Ellison's 22,876 - a majority of 2,416 and a swing of 10 per cent.

Speaking after the loss of Battersea, and concerns over James Wharton in Stockton South, George Osborne said: "These are not people we should be losing from parliament, and there will be a very big post-mortem coming."

A Labour Lambeth councillor, Ms De Cordova is registered blind and has previously said her decision to run for parliament came from her experiences as a disabled woman.

According to the South West Londoner, Ms De Cordova opposed Brexit and vowed to “fight against a Tory ‘Hard Brexit’”.

Locally, she promised to “work to get more homes and better rent levels in our area and fight the cuts to our schools.”

Join our commenting forum

Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies

Comments

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged inPlease refresh your browser to be logged in