Jo Swinson has admitted her strategy "hasn't worked" after being ousted as an MP and Liberal Democrat leader.

She said she "does not regret trying everything" to stop Brexit but apologised to a swathe of candidates who failed to make gains in the general election.

In a speech in London after losing her East Dunbartonshire seat to the Scottish National Party, Ms Swinson admitted she was "devastated" the Liberal Democrats ended the night with one seat less than it already had.

SNP's Sturgeon celebrates Swinson losing

The former minister paid tribute to long-serving colleagues who all failed to win seats in the House of Commons again including Brexit spokesperson Tom Brake, and defectors to the party Luciana Berger and Sam Gyimah.

Reflecting on her five months in the top job, Ms Swinson said she was "proud" to be the Lib Dems' first female leader, commenting that "smashing the glass ceiling" meant "a lot of broken glass comes down on your head".


She alluded to the "experience" of current Lib Dem spokeswomen, including Layla Moran, Christine Jardine, Wera Hobhouse and Sarah Olney as women who could lead the party.

"Though I won't be your leader, I will be walking alongside you," she added, telling activists: "We will reflect, regroup and refresh."

Her deputy Sir Ed Davey and Lib Dem president Baroness Sal Brinton are replacing Ms Swinson as joint acting leaders, with a leadership election due in the New Year.

Image: Sir Ed Davey and Baroness Sal Brinton are temporarily joint acting leaders

After losing her seat to the SNP's Amy Callaghan by just 149 votes, Ms Swinson said at the count: "Tonight's result is obviously hugely disappointing, in East Dunbartonshire, and across the whole country with Boris Johnson winning a majority.

"I am proud that in this campaign, the Liberal Democrats have stood up for openness, generosity and hope. We were honest about what we believe in and what we were trying to achieve.

"This is clearly a setback for liberal values. But there are millions of people across the country who believe in them. By coming together to fight for them, we can create a positive future."

Ms Swinson lost East Dunbartonshire in 2015 after the party's unpopular coalition with the Tories, but won it back two years later.

The former business minister took over the Lib Dems after her predecessor Sir Vince Cable stepped down in the summer, having overseen excellent results in both the European and local elections earlier this year.

She defeated Sir Ed in the contest to replace Sir Vince.

Watch the moment Lib Dem leader Jo Swinson lost her seat

Ms Swinson started the general election campaign by declaring she was a candidate to be prime minister.

But, after the Lib Dems struggled to achieve much momentum over the past five weeks, she ended up instead urging voters to try and stop Mr Johnson, the prime minister, securing a majority.

Baroness Brinton, the Lib Dems' president, said: "I want to thank Jo Swinson for her honest and fearless leadership of the Liberal Democrats.

"In this election, we gained more votes than in 2017 and we have been joined by many new MPs.

"In the weeks ahead we will elect a new leader and our party will continue to be the rallying point for anyone who believes in a country where everyone has the chance to get on in life."

But Simon Hughes, a former Lib Dem MP, told Sky News: "Every single decision taken since Jo became the leader was the wrong decision... the whole thing has been a disaster."