It says much of the Conservatives’ current plight that a win of just 495 votes is being hailed with relief inside the party.
The Conservatives narrowly avoided a total wipeout in the July 20 trio of byelections, successfully defending Boris Johnson’s former seat in Uxbridge and South Ruislip with the election of Steve Tuckwell. The unpopularity of London Labour Mayor’s Sadiq Khan’s expansion of the ultra low emissions zone (Ulez) undoubtedly contributed to the Conservative defence of Uxbridge.
But the party’s losses in Somerton and Frome in Somerset, and Selby and Ainsty in North Yorkshire, are notable.
