No surprises as Straw sweeps to easy victory

VICTORIOUS Jack Straw pledged to repay the trust shown in him by the British people after a "political earthquake."

The man tipped as the next Home Secretary admitted he was stunned by his party's massive victory. Mr Straw sat alone on the balcony at King George's Hall as the news of Labour's landslide victory was greeted by his cheering supporters below.

He said: "I was asked a few days ago what the result would be and I predicted a Labour majority of 50 seats. But this is a once in a lifetime political earthquake and it is going to take some time for it all to sink in.

"This result shows two things, people are ready to accept New Labour and they are very angry with the Tory Government."

Mr Straw added: "It is 18 years to the day since I was elected as MP for Blackburn.

"The problem has been that the wishes of the people of Blackburn have not been fully reflected by the people of the United Kingdom.

"Now, for the first time in 18 years, we will be able to do what we have been doing in Blackburn across the rest of Britain."

Mr Straw went on to say that many of the ideas which helped to form the policies of New Labour have been shaped by his experiences as an MP in East Lancashire.

Despite predictions of a high turnout, the number of people who turned out dropped by 9.5 percent.

Jack Straw's share of the vote stayed roughly the same but the Conservatives lost around 9,000 votes in Blackburn. Tory candidate Geeta Sidhu said: "Even though I have lost tonight I am in distinguished company when you consider people like Michael Portillo have also lost.

"The country deserves everything it has got with this vote tonight. Within a year the muzzle will be off and people like John Prescott will have their say."

She added: "If anything, this experience has whetted my appetite and I would love the opportunity to have another try at becoming an MP."

The Liberal Democrat vote also fell and candidate Stephen Fenn said: "While it has been a disappointing night in Blackburn, I have been pleased with the way things across the country have gone for us.

"We have concentrated our efforts in certain areas of Blackburn and we hope that will be reflected in the results for the council elections."

Labour activists accused opponents of a dirty tricks campaign in the Corporation park area of Blackburn.

Blackburn Council candidate Ashley Whalley accused Tory supporters of intimating people outside polling stations. He claimed groups of men were singling out women at the Sacred Heart and St Silas' polling stations.

He said: "I have been involved in politics for 25 years but I have never seen anything like this before.

"One young woman was very upset and had to be comforted by one of our council candidates."

Returning officer Gerald Davies said: "We have received complaints of intimidation but we were not told about it at the time.

"If we had been told then, I would have done something about it, but there is nothing I can do now."

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