Labour eyes Blair-level landslide in region after Selby win

The Conservatives, who held the seat since its inception in 2010, lost a majority of over 20,000 in what was the biggest post-war by-election victory for Labour against their main opposition.

The swing, if replicated across Yorkshire and nationally, could see Sir Keir Starmer deliver a majority to rival Tony Blair’s 1997 landslide victory.

Mr Mather said in the early hours of Friday morning at Selby Leisure Centre that he was “very confident” that Labour will see some “fantastic” results in other North Yorkshire seats.

Experts also suggested that Labour may now be able to ride the momentum of the by-election victory and seek to win the North Yorkshire mayoral election expected next year.

Asked by The Yorkshire Post if Labour could realistically win more seats in the Tory heartland of North Yorkshire, Mr Mather said: “It was a vote in favour of a positive alternative.

“I think there are lots of good Labour candidates standing across this region in York Outer and in Scarborough and Whitby who are fantastic and making a similar sort of case to their constituents and I’m very confident we will see some fantastic results at the next election.”

Yesterday saw Rishi Sunak avoid losing all three Tory-held seats in the by-elections after his party defied the odds and held on to Boris Johnson’s former seat of Uxbridge, where Labour saw a large number of voters opposing Labour London mayor Sadiq Khan’s ULEZ emissions charge for cars in the outer London seat.

In the South West, the Liberal Democrats overturned a 36,000 majority in Somerton and Frome, establishing a 11,000 majority of their own in its former heartland of the West Country.

Yesterday Rishi Sunak sent a clear message to those who felt the next election is a foregone conclusion.

The Prime Minister told broadcasters: “Westminster’s been acting like the next election is a done deal.

“The Labour Party has been acting like it’s a done deal, the people of Uxbridge just told all of them that it’s not.

“The message I take away is that we’ve got to double down, stick to our plan and deliver for people. That’s what I heard when I was out on the doorsteps and that’s what we’re going to do.”

However, the Tories were last night told to prepare for mayoral races across Yorkshire, in anticipation of the party losing hundreds of seats across the country at the next election.

Henri Murison, Chief Executive of the Northern Powerhouse Partnership, said: “If the government loses the next general election, mayoral contests could be a useful tool to rebuild the party in opposition.

“As Labour Mayors like Tracy Brabin have shown, mayoralties allow opposition parties to demonstrate a record of delivery, which is a huge asset in marginal seats such as Shipley or Calder Valley, where issues such as bringing buses back under public control have proved popular with voters.

“In the same way Tees Valley Mayor Ben Houchen’s landmark victory in 2017 opened the door for a number of Conservatives MPs in nearby constituencies.

“Even the new York and North Yorkshire mayoralty - historically an area with a bank of rural Conservative voters - could be within Labour’s grasp if the swing in Selby is repeated.”