In 1951 Clement Attlee’s Labour Party achieved the highest popular vote of any party up to that time (a record that stood until 1992). However, the Tories “won” the 1951 election.

In 2005, Tony Blair’s Labour party received 9.6 million votes, resulting in 355 seats in parliament compared with 198 Tory seats.

However, In 2017 Corbyn achieved 12.9 million votes, close to Tony Blair’s pre 2005 “landslide” victories, but “lost”.

One of the main reasons for the post-2010 Labour parliamentary losses was due to the collapse of the Lib Dem vote.

I can understand why the right and centrists want to blame Corbyn and Corbynism for Labour’s tragic losses in parliament, but it is astounding that many on the left are also taking this view rather than campaigning for proportional representation.

Ted Watson

Brighton

General election 2019: How the night unfolded Show all 27 1 /27 General election 2019: How the night unfolded General election 2019: How the night unfolded Boris Johnson wins biggest Tory landslide since Thatcher ...while Labour records worst result since Clement Attlee PA General election 2019: How the night unfolded 11.28pm - First result to be announced Labour holds Newcastle Central, albeit with a reduced majority, in the first result to be announced in the 2019 General Election PA General election 2019: How the night unfolded 11.33pm - Conservatives gain Blyth Valley The Conservatives gain Blyth Valley, in the North East, from Labour in the first big upset of the night. The seat had been held by Labour since 1950 BBC General election 2019: How the night unfolded 1.23am - Conservatives succeed in appealing to "Workington Man" The Tories won the North West constituency from Labour - the first time the seat has changed hands since 1979 Telegraph General election 2019: How the night unfolded 1.27am - The SNP gains Rutherglen & Hamilton West from Labour, the first of six seats they take from Jeremy Corbyn's party First Minister Nicola Sturgeon, takes a selfie with some her newly elected MP's at the Glasgow count Getty General election 2019: How the night unfolded 1.50am - The Tories gain Wrexham from Labour The first time the party have ever held the seat ITV General election 2019: How the night unfolded 1.52am - Labour wins Putney from the Conservatives The party's first gain of the night from the Tories BBC General election 2019: How the night unfolded 1.55am - The SNP gains its first seat from the Tories Winning Angus Press Association Images General election 2019: How the night unfolded 2.33am - Iain Duncan Smith holds on to seat The former Tory leader Iain Duncan Smith held on to his Chingford & Woodford Green seat, but saw his majority cut almost in half to just 1,262 Reuters General election 2019: How the night unfolded 2.46am - Conservatives gain Tom Watson's old seat The Tories gained West Bromwich West from Labour in an 11.69% swing Getty General election 2019: How the night unfolded 2.50am - Bishop Auckland, a Labour seat since 1935, becomes a Tory gain Dehenna Davison won with a majority of 7,962 CharlElmore/Twitter General election 2019: How the night unfolded 2.54am - Chuka Umunna loses out to Tories The former Streatham MP who defected from Labour to the Independent Group before switching to the Liberal Democrats, lost out to the Conservative party in Cities of London & Westminster James Moreland/Twitter General election 2019: How the night unfolded 2.58am - DUP's Westminster leader beaten Nigel Dodds was beaten by Sinn Fein's John Finucane in Belfast North Getty General election 2019: How the night unfolded 3.15am - Tories lose seat to the Lib Dems Zac Goldsmith lost his Richmond Park seat to the Liberal Democrats, the party's first gain of the night PA General election 2019: How the night unfolded 3.24am - Jeremy Corbyn announces he will not lead party in future elections The Labour leader was voted back in to the Islington North seat but described the results as "very disappointing" and said he would not lead the party in any future election campaign Reuters General election 2019: How the night unfolded 3.32am - Labour's Caroline Flint loses her seat to the Tories The first time her party has not held the seat since 1922 Sky News General election 2019: How the night unfolded 3.38am - The Tories beat Labour in Wakefield Mary Creagh lost out to Imran Ahmad-Khan in a Labour seat since 1932 Reuters General election 2019: How the night unfolded 3.42am - Boris extends his majority in Uxbridge & Ruislip South The Prime Minister said: "It does look as though this One Nation Conservative Government has been given a powerful new mandate to get Brexit done." Reuters General election 2019: How the night unfolded 3.44am - The Tories gain Rother Valley and Sedgefield 3.44am - The Conservatives gained Rother Valley, a Labour seat since 1918, and Sedgefield, which was once held by former prime minister Tony Blair AFP via Getty General election 2019: How the night unfolded 3.45am - Jo Swinson loses seat The Liberal Democrat leader lost her Dunbartonshire East seat to the SNP PA General election 2019: How the night unfolded 4.25am - Conservatives retake Kensington from Labour The Tories took back the seat with a margin of 150 votes PA General election 2019: How the night unfolded 5.15am - Major scalp for the Tories 5.15am - Dennis Skinner, Labour's Beast Of Bolsover loses his seat that had been red since 1950 AFP General election 2019: How the night unfolded 6.08am - US President Donald Trump congratulates Boris Johnson on his victory US President Donald Trump congratulates Boris Johnson on his victory https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump/status/1205368801438707713 General election 2019: How the night unfolded How the UK voted after 649 0f 650 seats General Election 2019 how the UK voted after 649 0f 650 seats. See story POLITICS Election. Infographic PA Graphics PA Graphics Press Association Images General election 2019: How the night unfolded 6.23am - Acting Lib Dem leaders announced 6.23am - Sir Ed Davey and Baroness Sal Brinton were announced as the joint acting leaders of the Liberal Democrats following Jo Swinson's defeat PA General election 2019: How the night unfolded Prime Minister Boris Johnson and Carrie Symonds arrive back at Downing Street AP General election 2019: How the night unfolded State of the parties General Election 2019 state of the parties. See story POLITICS Election. Infographic PA Graphics PA Graphics Press Association Images

Monitoring Tory promises

As a UK citizen, I agreed with Roger Yalden (Letters, 14 December) that the press needs to hold politicians to account for all of the promises made. For a more visual reminder, how about a giant billboard on Big Ben with a bar chart showing the progress of fulfilling each of the major manifesto commitments? Similar to the signs outside churches asking for donations to repair the roof or steeple and a marker showing progress.

A bar chart for each of the big promises (40 new hospitals, 50,000 nurses, 20,000 policemen and of course a trade deal with the EU by January 2020) would serve as a daily reminder to all MPs to focus on what they were elected to deliver. And it could be regularly published by the press and online.

John Fields

Norway

Corbyn was permanently on the fence

So Jeremy Corbyn “has done everything he could”. That’s the whole problem. It was manifestly clear that he could never lead the Labour Party to victory because he could not get off the fence about so many issues.

As a result, I, as a Labour voter for 50 years, face at least another five years before we get a government with any interest in honesty, integrity and equity. I now face a world, post-Brexit, where my children and grandchildren will be less safe and poorer, and with fewer opportunities.

Tim Elliott

Address supplied

Corbyn inspired millions

Adding to the other miseries of the past few years, has been the sheer agony, at times, of watching much of the press do their damnedest to destroy a good man.

Jeremy Corbyn could credibly be described as having “no enemies” back in 2015, when the hard-working backbencher gamely stood as a reluctant leadership candidate, citing the party’s failure to resist austerity.

He went on to inspire millions of young people with the hope of a better, fairer, greener country, and a more peaceful world. There wasn’t anything ignoble about Corbyn’s doomed campaign to reunite a polarised Britain, following the Brexit disaster, and to resist an increasingly rabid right. Yet, for daring to stand against the establishment, and with the oppressed, wherever they may be, this conspicuously kind and gentle human being has been relentlessly and remorselessly traduced.

Throughout all this, and despite the most distressing personal vilification, I have never once seen Corbyn resort to abuse of any kind. He has shown grace under pressure, the definition of courage, and for that, regardless of the outcome, he deserves respect.

Emma Jones

Oxfordshire

Food bank app

I was horrified to learn about the fact that food banks are having to pay £180 to be included on an app run by a newly elected Tory MP. Therefore, I wondered if you would be kind enough to consider launching an appeal, to those who run food banks, along the lines of a comment I have shared on Facebook.

I’m sure there would be people out there who would be happy to help them set up a cooperative.

If you run a food bank registered to this app, why not set up a Facebook group, invite other food banks who use the app to join your group and put a shout out for someone to design an app for you all? Cut out the greedy middle man.