UK Election 2017
UK election: Hung parliament for Britain as Theresa May's gamble backfires, as it happened
Posted Thu 8 Jun 2017 at 6:53pm Thursday 8 Jun 2017 at 6:53pm Thu 8 Jun 2017 at 6:53pm , updated Fri 9 Jun 2017 at 11:07am Friday 9 Jun 2017 at 11:07am Fri 9 Jun 2017 at 11:07am
British Prime Minister Theresa May speaks to her constituency. (AP: Alastair Grant)
abc.net.au/news/uk-election-live-coverage-as-votes-are-counted/8602180
The UK election has returned a hung parliament, with no party able to win a majority.
The BBC reports incumbent Prime Minister Theresa May intends to stay on as Conservatives leader, after earlier declaring the UK needs "stability".
Look back at how we covered developments in our blog.
Fri 9 Jun 2017 at 10:46am Friday 9 Jun 2017 at 10:46am Fri 9 Jun 2017 at 10:46am
By Luke Royes
This is where we'll leave our live coverage of the 2017 British general election in which the Conservatives have lost their majority.
Here is a wrap up of where the surprise result leaves UK politics:
Prime Minister Theresa May's Conservative Party is likely to rely on Northern Ireland's DUP support to reach the 326-seat majority threshold
Mrs May will seek permission from Queen Elizabeth to try to form a government
Opposition Leader Jeremy Corbyn has delivered stunning electoral turnaround for Labour, called on Ms May to resign
Ms May "intends" to remain British PM despite snap election gamble failing, the BBC reports
The shock result raises fresh questions about the UK's future days out from Brexit talks with EU getting underway
The ABC will provide full UK election coverage on radio, TV and on digital platforms. Find our full 2017 election coverage here.
Fri 9 Jun 2017 at 9:58am Friday 9 Jun 2017 at 9:58am Fri 9 Jun 2017 at 9:58am
DUP tight-lipped
There are reports Northern Ireland's Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) has resolved to back Theresa May's Conservatives in forming government... but the party says it will not add to media speculation.
"We have not made any comment and won't until later on today," a spokeswoman for the party said.
UKIP leader prepares to leave
The leader of the anti-EU party UKIP, Paul Nuttall, says he'll resign after the party failed to win any seats and saw its vote shrink.
The party's former leader and Brexit campaigner Nigel Farage earlier said he might return to politics if a hard departure from the EU was at risk after the shock election result.
Sturgeon responds to losses in Scotland
First Minister of Scotland and the Scottish National Party (SNP) leader Nicola Sturgeon has tweeted saying the party "had bitterly disappointing losses" and would now "reflect carefully on the results and move forward in the best interests of all of Scotland".
Ms Sturgeon's SNP won the election in Scotland, but its vote share fell after 10 years in power in Scotland's devolved parliament. The Scottish Conservatives have picked up 12 seats, bringing its party room to 13 members.
May to visit Queen
Theresa May will go to Buckingham Palace at 12:30pm London time (9:30pm AEST) to ask for permission to form a government.
Northern Ireland's Democratic Unionist Party are considering supporting the Conservatives in parliament in a so-called "confidence and supply" arrangement, Sky News is reporting.
European Council President Donald Tusk, who will oversee EU negotiations on Britain's withdrawal, warns that London faces a firm deadline to complete talks and that delays in starting them raise the risk of failing to reach a deal.
'Yet another own goal'
Across the channel in Europe, the European Parliament's top Brexit official Guy Verhofstadt has said the British election result will make "already complex negotiations even more complicated".
He said it was "yet another own goal" for the Conservatives, "after Cameron now May".
Lord Buckethead, Mr Fishfinger, Monster Raving Loonies... oh my!
Reuters: Andrew Yates
Meet the real character of the UK election - the Britons in fancy dress sidling up to UK leaders as the results rolled in? There's more to them than meets the eye.
Read more about the people and policies behind the costumes.
Pound still down
The British pound lost as much as 3 cents against the US dollar in late Thursday and early Friday trade, to fall as low as $US1.2636 hours after the final results started trickling in.
It recovered somewhat to trade at $1.2677... but that's well short of the $1.2955 level before the exit polls were published late on Thursday in the UK.
At close of Australian trade, the Aussie dollar was also higher against the British pound at 59.4 British pence.
Three-decade high for Scottish Tories
There are few bright spots in this election result for British conservatives.
But up north Scottish Conservative leader Ruth Davidson has delivered the party's biggest success in Scotland since 1983, leading a dogged charge against independence from the United Kingdom that has left the nationalist movement reeling.
They won 13 of Scotland's 59 seats in Britain's 650 seat parliament, up from just one.
Ms Davidson gained traction by offsetting the dry image of British Prime Minister Theresa May, whose Scottish approval ratings plummeted 15 points in three weeks according to pollster YouGov.
What now for Theresa May's 'strong and stable leadership'?
Reuters: Neil Hall
It was Theresa May's key campaign pitch and voters have abandoned the Tories. So where does this leave leadership in Britain days out from Brexit talks officially getting underway? Europe correspondent Steve Cannane looks back at how we got to this point and where to from here for British politics.
By Katie Cassidy
I'm handing over the blog from here to my colleague Luke Royes. Thanks all for your company.
We're still expecting Theresa May to make a statement this evening (AEST), so don't miss that.
'We are ready to serve this country'
In a statement this morning (BST), Mr Corbyn said:
It's "pretty clear who won this election"
Brexit negotiations must go ahead in 11 days' time
Labour is "ready to serve this country"
Parliament will have to take a decision on what happens when the Government puts forward its program
Labour has made "no deals, no pacts"
How do the Conservatives form government?
If the Tories do a deal with Northern Ireland's DUP (which has won 10 seats), that will deliver the 326 seats needed to form majority government.
Sky News is reporting that talks between the two parties have already started.
'No deals' from Labour
Labour's John McDonnell says the party will not do a coalition deal, and will put itself forward to form a minority government.
Speaking to BBC Radio, Mr McDonnell said:
"We'll put ourselves forward to serve the country and form a minority government and the reason for that is I don't think the Conservative Party is stable, I don't think the prime minister is stable.
"I don't want to be derogatory but I think she is a lame duck prime minister."
The return of Farage
Earlier (actually it was several hours ago now) I reported how Nigel Farage had told the BBC that if Brexit was under threat, he would have no choice but to return to political life. Mr Farage is now saying this:
Reaction from Europe
We're starting to get reaction from Europe on the UK election, and of course it's focused on Brexit.
Germany's deputy foreign minister Michael Roth:
"We need to get started on the negotiations as soon as possible because time is ticking.
"Regardless of the question of who will form a government in Britain, time is ticking... We have less than two years to negotiate the exit ... so we should not waste any time now."
Czech PM Bohuslav Sobotka:
"I only hope that it will not take too long (to form a government) because we have already lost several months from the time that Britain officially announced Brexit in March.
"But now it will be necessary to wait for who will form a government and what this government will bring to negotiations over Brexit."
Why did Corbyn do so well this election?
Jeremy Corbyn has taken the Labour proportion of the national vote to 40 per cent, writes Nick Rowley, who's a former adviser to Tony Blair.
Mr Corbyn's shock performance demonstrates his particular brand of leftist populism is seen as more authentic than the robotic sound bites ("strong and stable leadership"; "Brexit is Brexit") repeated by Theresa May. Read Rowley's full analysis.
May 'has no intention of resigning'
Here's the latest from the BBC's political editor:
UPDATE: Sky News is now also reporting this.
The unpredictable consequences of this vote
Theresa May gambled and lost badly, writes ABC News correspondent James Glenday.
Here he takes a look at what happens now, who will form government and what does this mean for Brexit.
Posted 8 Jun 2017 8 Jun 2017 Thu 8 Jun 2017 at 6:53pm , updated 9 Jun 2017 9 Jun 2017 Fri 9 Jun 2017 at 11:07am
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