'The Labour Party has won this general election': Sunak concedes defeat

Rishi Sunak has conceded defeat in the general election - putting Sir Keir Starmer on course to enter Downing Street as the country's first Labour prime minister in 14 years.

Speaking after winning his seat, the outgoing prime minister said it had been a "difficult night" for his party and he took "responsibility" for their catastrophic set of results.

"The Labour Party has won this general election and I have called Sir Keir Starmer to congratulate him on his victory," he said.

Minutes later, Labour secured the 326 seats required for a majority in the House of Commons.

Follow general election results live

Results are still being counted, but the exit poll has put Labour on course to win 410 seats - more than double it won at the last election and giving it a majority of 170 in the House of Commons.

That is just shy of the historic the majority of 179 won in 1997 by Sir Tony Blair, Labour's last elected prime minister.

The results have seen the nation firmly turn its back on the Tories, with the once dominant party reduced to just 131 MPs - its lowest number in history, the exit poll predicts

Other key moments from a dramatic night of results include:

• Several Tory cabinet ministers lost seats to Labour, including Grant Shapps and Penny Mordaunt;
• Others fell victim to the Lib Dem plan to "smash" the Tory Blue Wall, like Alex Chalk and Gillian Keegan;
• Former Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn held on to his seat as an independent;
• Reform UK leader Nigel Farage won a Commons seat at his eighth attempt;
• Green Party co-leader Carla Denyer defeated shadow culture secretary Thangam Debbonaire in Bristol Central;
• Labour's shadow paymaster general Jonathan Ashworth lost his seat to an independent

Mr Sunak became the youngest prime minister of the modern era when he took over the Conservative Party in 2022.

In 2014, he was selected as the Conservative Party candidate in the Yorkshire seat of Richmond - previously held by former Tory leader William Hague - before the following year's general election.

After Liz Truss's resignation sparked a Tory leadership race, he was appointed as leader of the party and prime minister in October 2022, the first Hindu and British Asian to reach the position in UK history.

This breaking news story is being updated and more details will be published shortly.

Please refresh the page for the fullest version.

You can receive breaking news alerts on a smartphone or tablet via the Sky News app. You can also follow @SkyNews on X or subscribe to our YouTube channel to keep up with the latest news.