Labour hails its best result in Wales for a generation Labour has hailed its best general election result in Wales in 25 years after taking back Gower, Cardiff North and […]

Labour has hailed its best general election result in Wales in 25 years after taking back Gower, Cardiff North and the Vale of Clwyd from the Conservative Party.

After fears that Labour could suffer its worst defeat in Wales since the 1950s, a remarkable turnaround has seen the party deliver a sharp blow to the Tories who had hoped to make major gains.

Nationalists Plaid Cymru won four seats at the expense of the last remaining Liberal Democrat in Wales.

The i politics newsletter cut through the noise Email address is invalid Email address is invalid Thank you for subscribing! Sorry, there was a problem with your subscription.

There is now no Liberal MP in Wales for the first time since the party was formed in 1859 after Mark Williams, the veteran Lib Dem MP for Ceredigion, was defeated by 23-year-old Ben lake.

Yesterday Labour First Minister Carwyn Jones hailed the results as “fantastic”.

He said: “We pulled out all the stops. We went out to listen to people, speak to people on the doorstep.”

He also said that Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn was had been responsible for the “capture” of young voters: “Jeremy went around campaigning tirelessly around the whole of the UK listening to people.“

The praise for Mr Corbyn came after the two Labour leaders looked awkward together at a Cardiff North rally at the start of the campaign. That event was quickly followed by a poll that suggested a Tory surge could see Labour lose control in Wales for the first time in generations.

However, Labour’s share of the vote in Wales was 48.9 per cent, its highest since 1997 and a 2.9 per cent swing from the Conservatives, while victory in Gower regained a seat that the party lost for the first time in more than 100 years in 2015.

In a bruising night, the Conservatives lost seats but also missed out on taking target seats of Bridgend and Wrexham. Both were visited by Theresa May during the campaign.

Elsewhere Plaid Cymru gained four seats for the first time since 2001, after holding on to Afon by just 92 votes.