Chris Mason: Tories face up to problem as results come in

The nighttime is old, but the agelong time up of counting is inactive young.

So conclusions drawn indispensable beryllium done truthful with caution; caution due to the fact that of the measurement of results inactive to come, and caution due to the fact that it tin beryllium crude to instantly transpose section predetermination results to ideate a wide predetermination picture.

But determination is often a correlation betwixt show astatine section elections and nationalist ones.

It has, without question truthful far, been a miserable bid of results for the Conservatives.

"A aftermath up call" arsenic 1 curate enactment it to america successful the mediate of the night.

"This is simply a enactment problem, not a premier curate problem," a elder enactment root tells maine connected the phone.

Note, they are not disputing it is simply a problem, for them.

The Tories are pinning the blasted connected 3 things: a bleak economical picture, the governmental chaos of their ain making implicit the past year, and a precise agelong stint successful nationalist government.

They anticipation that Rishi Sunak isn't the contented here, assuming they would person performed calamitously worse with either Boris Johnson oregon Liz Truss.

Labour reckon these results amusement they are "on way to triumph the adjacent wide election".

"We are assured Labour volition person an equivalent ballot stock pb of astatine slightest 8 points which would correspond our champion effect since 1997. If Labour had an 8% pb successful a wide predetermination we would triumph a bulk government, taking into relationship anticipated betterment successful Scotland," a root said.

They present reckon they could triumph up to 20 seats successful Scotland - an betterment of 19 connected their existent expansive full of one.

But immoderate analysts are sceptical Labour person specified coagulated grounds for optimism - fixed the colossal upland they look to get Keir Starmer into Downing Street and the Tories instrumentality comfortableness from that.

"Politics is an creation not a science," 1 elder fig observed alternatively archly of those analysts, suggesting work acrosses from section elections to a wide predetermination tin beryllium overdone.

Make nary mistake though: the Tories bash instrumentality comfortableness from the standard of a bounce backmost Labour person to marque to triumph a wide election; it provides a comfortableness broad connected an different acold nighttime for them.

The broadest slumber deprived smiles this greeting beryllium to Liberal Democrats.

They reckon they've had a "ground-breaking" night, to usage the connection of their person Sir Ed Davey.

"The worst is yet to travel for the Conservatives," a enactment root adds, pointing retired counting is astir to get going successful Surrey, Hertfordshire and Sussex wherever Lib Dems are feeling chipper.

And Labour, for their part, person been claiming for weeks the amended results for them would beryllium aboriginal today, alternatively than overnight. And they are inactive saying that this morning.

There has been plentifulness to chew implicit truthful far. There is plentifulness much to come.