Theresa May's decision to call a snap general election has backfired spectacularly, with the Tories losing their majority in House of Commons to a Labour surge that saw Jeremy Corbyn stage one of the most astonishing comebacks ever seen in a UK election.

May went to the country in the belief she could take advantage of Corbyn's dire poll ratings to win an enormous parliamentary majority and secure her position as prime minister for the next five years. Instead, she appears to have committed one of the most unnecessarily self-destructive acts in British electoral history.

With 649/650 seats declared, the Tories are the largest party in parliament but short of the working majority of 17 seats they won under David Cameron in the 2015 general election. This throws their ability to form a new government into chaos, just days before Brexit negotiations are due to begin.

May visited Buckingham Palace today and upon her return to Downing Street said she would form a government, albeit with the help of "friends and allies" in Northern Ireland's Democratic Unionist Party.

"I will form a government," May said, "a government that can provide certainty and lead Britain forward at this uncertain time."



But her future as prime minister is now in severe doubt, with one Conservative MP claiming to BuzzFeed News that foreign secretary Boris Johnson, who dropped out of the leadership race after the Brexit vote, is already considering his options as a potential replacement. However, according to the BBC, May has no intention of resigning.



The prime minister first indicted she wanted to stay on to lead a minority Tory government, after being re-elected in Maidenhead, saying: "At this time, more than anything else, this country needs a period of stability. And if, as the indications have shown, if this is correct, that the Conservative party has won the most seats and probably the most votes, then it will be incumbent upon us to ensure that we have that period of stability, and that is exactly what we will do."



Anna Soubry, a pro-Remain Tory MP who only just held on to her seat, was the first Conservative to publicly say that May should go. Describing the Tory campaign as "pretty dreadful", Soubry told the BBC the result was "bad" and that May should "consider her position".

Labour and the Liberal Democrats said they would not be willing to form a coalition, leaving a Conservative minority administration as the most likely outcome of the election. However, this raises the prospect of another general election being called in the near future if no stable government can be formed.

Corbyn called for May to resign and "make way for a government that's truly representative" and that rejects austerity politics.

